‘Cicadapalooza’ Makes Noise In Lake Geneva

Photo showing dozens of recently emerged cicadas rest on a tree trunk at Big Foot Beach State Park in Lake Geneva on May 30, 2024.

Dozens of recently emerged cicadas rest on a tree trunk at Big Foot Beach State Park in Lake Geneva on May 30, 2024. / Photo Credit: Sarah Wolski, Wisconsin DNR

By Art Kabelowsky, DNR Forest Health Outreach and Communications, Fitchburg
Arthur.Kabelowsky@wisconsin.gov or 608-335-0167

Brood XIII periodical cicadas apparently love Lake Geneva. The Wisconsin hotspot for Brood XIII has again been the resort city of Lake Geneva, located just a few miles from the Illinois border. It experienced Wisconsin’s first emergence of the insects’ latest 17-year cycle on May 17. Cicadas remained active – noisily so – through late June.

The city of Lake Geneva, joined by the University of Wisconsin-Madison Entomology department, celebrated the insects’ return with Cicadapalooza, a family-friendly, free pop-up event on June 8 that included guided walking tours, presentations by UW-Madison entomologists, cicada merchandise, food and more.

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Pruning Can Control White Pine Blister Rust

By Linda Williams, DNR Forest Health Specialist, Woodruff
Linda.Williams@wisconsin.gov or 920-360-0665

Eastern white pines (Pinus strobus) can be beautiful trees in urban and forested areas (they can tower above the rest of the forest’s trees), but they can also attract a deadly disease.

White pine blister rust (Cronartium ribicola), also known as WPBR, is a fungus that can attack branches and the main stem of white pine, causing cankers that continue to grow each year and creating dead spots that can girdle branches or the main stem. Damage from a girdling canker may take years to become severe enough to cause tree decline and mortality. That means you may be able to help your trees and prevent mortality.

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Best Disposal Methods For Garlic Mustard

By Erika Segerson-Mueller, DNR Invasive Plant Program Specialist, Oshkosh Service Center
Erika.SegersonMueller@wisconsin.gov or 715-492-0391

Summer can be prime time for invasive plant control, with garlic mustard pulls and many other plant- or location-specific events taking place to confront invasive plants head-on.

Wanting to do your best to help, you might pull garlic mustard along your local hiking trail. But what should you do after you pull it?

Read on for invasive plant disposal tips to ensure you don’t inadvertently do more harm than good with your control efforts.

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Invasives Get The Spotlight On Madison TV

By Art Kabelowsky, DNR Forest Health Outreach and Communications, Fitchburg
Arthur.Kabelowsky@wisconsin.gov or 608-335-0167

The fight against invasive plant species in Wisconsin’s forests, woods and natural areas got a big boost over the airwaves in June.

WISC-TV (Channel 3 in Madison) produced a news feature on invasives that included an interview and tour with Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources (DNR) invasive plant specialist and Natural Heritage Conservation representative Mackenzie Manicki.

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Spongy Moth Egg Mass Surveying Video Released

By Art Kabelowsky, DNR Forest Health Outreach and Communications, Fitchburg
Arthur.Kabelowsky@wisconsin.gov or 608-335-0167

The Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources (DNR) Forest Health team joined with the DNR Office of Communications to produce an instructional video aimed at helping large landowners and land managers in the fight against spongy moth.

The video, less than 2 minutes in length, shows how to conduct a survey of spongy moth egg masses in the fall. With that information, people can predict how much damage to expect from the caterpillars in the spring, giving them time to make advance plans for the most effective control options.

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DNR Debuts Fact Sheet On Twolined Chestnut Borer

By Art Kabelowsky, DNR Forest Health Outreach and Communications, Fitchburg
Arthur.Kabelowsky@wisconsin.gov or 608-335-0167

The Wisconsin Department of Resources (DNR) has debuted a new Forest Health fact sheet on twolined chestnut borer (Agrilus bilineatus), a native beetle that attacks already weakened oaks in Wisconsin.

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2025 DNR Urban Forestry Grant Application Opening Soon

Urban Forestry grant applications are opening soon!

Beginning July 1, 2024, cities, villages, towns, counties, tribes and 501(c)(3) nonprofit organizations in –or conducting their projects in – Wisconsin can apply for a regular or startup 2025 Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources (DNR) Urban Forestry grant. The total 2025 available funding is $559,680, with a possible release of $139,920 of catastrophic storm reserve to fund a second round in March 2025. Continue reading “2025 DNR Urban Forestry Grant Application Opening Soon”

DNR Urban Forestry Coordinator Tracy Salisbury Retires

Congratulations to Tracy Salisbury, who began her retirement in May. Tracy has been with the DNR as an urban forestry coordinator in northeast Wisconsin since 1998.

“I enjoyed working with a variety of customers in my service area for the past 26 years,” Tracy said. “I had the opportunity to collaborate with the Green Bay Packers, American Transmission Company, Rotary Clubs and others on various projects. It was never a dull moment in the division’s urban forestry program!” Continue reading “DNR Urban Forestry Coordinator Tracy Salisbury Retires”

Urban Forestry Welcomes Jay Dampier As New IRA Grant Coordinator

Jay Dampier joined the Urban Forestry Team on June 3 as the new Inflation Reduction Act (IRA) grant coordinator. This is a federally funded project position that will be overseeing $4 million of federally funded grants awarded to Wisconsin communities, tribes and nonprofits. These IRA funds were allocated to the urban forestry program by the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) Forest Service in 2023. As part of the Justice 40 Initiative, 100% of the funds will be used to improve the urban forest resources and lives of those living in disadvantaged communities throughout the state. Continue reading “Urban Forestry Welcomes Jay Dampier As New IRA Grant Coordinator”

Urban Forestry Interns Join DNR For Summer Field Season

The DNR’s Urban Forestry program is again thrilled to welcome two interns this summer. Priscilla Loh and Taylor Colman, both students at Southern University in Baton Rouge, Louisiana, are based in the Milwaukee office, where they work on inventory and assessment projects to improve our understanding of local forests. Meet them below. Continue reading “Urban Forestry Interns Join DNR For Summer Field Season”