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Silver maple and wood boring ants
On Wed, 26 Mar 2003 23:45:39 GMT, "Eric Goldsmith"
wrote: At any rate, while I'll likely get a real arborist to take a look, I'd like input from the group on this guys 'diagnosis'. According to my wife, who spoke with him, he claims the damage is caused by "wood boring ants". Avoid this guy. You may have enough decay to warrant attention from an arborist, but the ants are an effect, not a cause. Trees are made up mostly of dead wood. A living sheet of cambium lies just under the bark, but, below that, not much goes on (which is why you can kill a tree by cutting a ring of bark all the way round the trunk). Ideally, the live tissue protects the dead wood from decay organisms and insects, but often when a branch dies or the bark is damaged a window is created that lets the decay into the heart of the tree. Most trees have some decay in them and can tolerate it just fine, but when there is too much damage the tree can fail. Silver maples are notorious for decay problems, so it's worth having it checked out. As for the ants, they just move in to make a nest in the resulting cavity. They mine out the decaying wood, which can actually have the beneficial effect of getting decay organisms out of the tree and slowing their spread. Though there is probably some support lost with the heartwood, most of the strength of the tree is in the living cylinder that surrounds it. And, since the wood was decaying, it's only a matter of when, not if. So leave the ants alone and get a qualified arborist to evaluate the extent of the decay. You can search for an ISA Certified Arborist by ZIP code at the ISA site (see sig below). Another good credential to look for is membership in the American Society of Consulting Arborists, which is only open to arborists with a significant number of education credits. http://www.asca-consultants.org/ good luck, Keith Babberney ISA Certified Arborist For more info about the International Society of Arboriculture, please visit http://www2.champaign.isa-arbor.com/. For consumer info about tree care, visit http://www2.champaign.isa-arbor.com/.../consumer.html |
#2
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Silver maple and wood boring ants
In article , "Eric Goldsmith"
writes: If there is a more appropriate place to post this type of question, please let me know. I have a silver maple in my front yard which, I've recently noticed, has a hole developing in the trunk at about chest level. Through the hole, you can see into the center of the tree, which appears to be rotten wood. We've been meaning to have someone take a look at it, when lo and behold, some guy shows up at the front door today - apparently canvassing the neighborhood to drum up business. I have no knowledge of this guy's credentials or qualifications beyond a business card which claims he's a "tree care specialist". At any rate, while I'll likely get a real arborist to take a look, I'd like input from the group on this guys 'diagnosis'. According to my wife, who spoke with him, he claims the damage is caused by "wood boring ants". A Google search for "wood boring ants silver maple" didn't yield anything useful. The term carpenter ant is more common. I am not sure if silver maples have their own species. I've only seen carpenters in Cedar up in Oregon, but it is possible. Can you 'explore' the hole any? If they are ants just paying too much attention to the hole should generate some defensive behavior. If you can see more deeply into the tree and it looks rotten, it probably is. Some carpenters use infected trees as colonies because the other bugs that the rot grows are tasty. The Cedar variety used the tree only as a home, and base of activity. There are likely Termite exterminators that would be helpful in diagnosis and treatment in you county yellow pages. David Giunti email: unity What is the question? Gertrude Stein's last words No one mouth is big enough to utter the whole thing. Alan Watts On Display in the UK http://www.web-gallery.co.uk |
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Silver maple and wood boring ants
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Silver maple and wood boring ants
We have carpenter ants here every summer. A couple of years ago, I noticed
on one of our jackpines, saw dust coming out of a hole about 4 feet off the ground and running down the tree. I asked an uncle who works in forestry and he said it's most likely ants and that it's a good thing because they are letting you know that that part of the tree has a problem. The other good thing is that the rest of the tree above the hole and sawdust is probably fine and that the ants won't hurt anything. They kind of help clear out the problem spots. Two years later, there are no signs of ants in the tree and the tree is perfectly healthy. -- Tammie Zone 2b-3a Far Northern Ontario http://community.webshots.com/user/_tammie57 The term carpenter ant is more common. I am not sure if silver maples have their own species. I've only seen carpenters in Cedar up in Oregon, but it is possible. Can you 'explore' the hole any? If they are ants just paying too much attention to the hole should generate some defensive behavior. If you can see more deeply into the tree and it looks rotten, it probably is. Some carpenters use infected trees as colonies because the other bugs that the rot grows are tasty. The Cedar variety used the tree only as a home, and base of activity. There are likely Termite exterminators that would be helpful in diagnosis and treatment in you county yellow pages. David Giunti email: unity What is the question? Gertrude Stein's last words No one mouth is big enough to utter the whole thing. Alan Watts On Display in the UK http://www.web-gallery.co.uk |
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