Wendi Van Buren-ODNR, Division of Forestry
777 Columbus Avenue, 5-A
Lebanon, OH 45036-1607
(513) 932-6836

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RELATED INFORMATION

Insecticide Options for Protecting Ash Trees from Emerald Ash Borer

Managing Emerald Ash Borer (pdf)  An August 2008 Ohio Woodland Journal article. 

Ohio Quarantine Information

How Do I Know If It's an Ash? (pdf)

Ohio Commercial Firewood Dealers

EAB Life Cycle (pdf)

Ohio’s Ash Population
When Emerald Ash Borer was first discovered in Ohio (2003), the only available hard data for the number of ash trees came from the USDA Forest Service’s Forest Inventory & Analysis (FIA) Program. This was data last released in 1991.

At that time, the Forest Service listed Ohio as having 3.8 billion white ash trees. When, adding the relative percentage of green, blue, and pumpkin ash in our state, that led to a number of just greater than 5 billion total ash trees in Ohio. These numbers represent all sizes of trees, including seedlings.

The Forest Service has released its latest FIA data for our state and they are now using a new data collection process that does not count all trees. The new system counts only trees that are at least one inch in diameter. This new data indicates a total of more than 254 million ash trees (all species) one inch in diameter and greater*.  The new Forest Service counting method accounts only for the economically significant number of trees.

* USDA Forest Service - 2006 Forest Inventory Analysis Program

What do I need to know about firewood?
Emerald Ash Borer can become established when infested firewood is transported to new areas. Help stop the movement of exotic pests. DO NOT MOVE FIREWOOD.

Who should I contact?

  • ODNR Division of Forestry
    Service Forester
    Urban Forester
    1-877-247-8733

  • Ohio Department of Agriculture
    Phone: EAB Hotline - (888) OHIO-EAB
    Plant Pest Control Section - (614) 728-6400
    Plant Industry Division - (614) 728-6270
    Ohio Department of Agriculture - (614) 728-6200

  • Mail:
    Ohio Department of Agriculture
    Plant Industry Division, Emerald Ash Borer
    East Main Street
    Reynoldsburg, OH 43068-3399

  • Email:
    EAB Section: eab@mail.agri.state.oh.us

    Below is a typical Emerald Ash Borer (EAB) inquiry the Ohio Division of Forestry receives.
     
    Q: We have several ash trees that have been killed by the emerald ash borer. We are wondering what we can do with the trees after we cut them down. Are we allowed to sell them as firewood? We know we can’t burn them as the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency has regulations regarding burning near inhabited buildings.
     
    A: Because the Ohio Department of Agriculture (ODA) has extended the EAB quarantine statewide, you can move and sell your cut ash anywhere in Ohio.
     
    However, ODA and Division of Forestry recommend that people limit the movement of firewood when they sell or buy it to protect against the spread of all wood-borne pests, including the emerald ash borer and gypsy moth.
     
    EAB regulated articles can move freely within contiguous quarantined areas, except interstate movement into the protected areas.

The SCOOP on EMERALD ASH BORER

Emerald Ash Borer (EAB) is an insect from Asia that is attacking the Midwest’s ash trees. EAB is a member of the metallic wood boring beetle family. It attacks all native, North American ash trees regardless of the tree’s health. Once an EAB infestation occurs, it kills the tree in three to five years.

EAB is believed to have arrived in the United States in shipping pallets or cargo from eastern Asia approximately 10 years before it was discovered. It was first identified in the Detroit, Michigan area in July 2002 and then in Lucas County, Ohio, in February 2003. EAB has since been discovered in Michigan, Ohio, Indiana, Illinois, and Ontario Canada.

EAB is a slightly illusive insect because it spends the majority of its life under the bark. The larvae develop beneath the bark of ash trees and are flat, creamy white, with bell-shaped segments, and are about an inch long. Adult EAB are dark metallic green and a half-inch long.

EAB Life Cycle
From late spring through autumn adult beetles mate, and the female lays 60-90 individual eggs on ash tree bark. The eggs hatch 7 to 10 days later, and the larvae tunnel into the tree just beneath the bark where they feed on the live tissue of the tree. The larvae’s S-shaped feeding pattern, called galleries, disrupts the transport of water and nutrients, eventually killing the tree. Over the winter, the larvae remain under the bark. When warmer weather arrives, larvae enter the pupal stage and then transform into adults. The beetles emerge through the bark leaving behind 1/8 inch, distinctive D-shaped exit holes. The adults feed on leaves before mating and laying eggs, starting the cycle over again.

How to Tell if Your Tree Has EAB
There are several things that may indicate your ash tree has Emerald Ash Borer.

  • Branch dieback at the top of the tree

  • Vertical splits in the bark

  • Sprouting on the trunk and at the base of the tree

  • Scratched bark from woodpeckers feeding on the larvae

  • Distinct 1/8 inch, D-shaped exit holes in the bark

  • S-shaped, sawdust-packed galleries under the bark

EAB is very difficult to detect until a tree has been infested for at least a year because the larvae feed from the top of the tree first. When looking for EAB it is important to peel off the bark to look for the larvae and the galleries.