The Wisconsin Forestry Center (WFC) is seeking forestry professionals to create 90-second videos showing an authentic representation of a day in your life as you go about your job duties. The videos will be posted on the WFC’s Facebook and Instagram accounts to promote awareness of forestry jobs and foster workforce development. Check with your employer to obtain approval and email wfc@uwsp.edu to get involved. Continue reading “Share ‘A Day In The Life’ To Highlight Your Career In Urban Forestry”
Weed Management Area Grant Deadline Nears
By Erika Segerson-Mueller, DNR Invasive Plant Program Specialist, Oshkosh Service Center;
Erika.SegersonMueller@wisconsin.gov or 715-492-0391
Controlling invasive plants on your forested property can be a challenging and costly endeavor. The Weed Management Area – Private Forest Grant Program (WMA-PFGP) helps make this process easier for its recipients. Though the April 1 application deadline is quickly approaching, there is still time to apply for funding for your forest.
Continue reading “Weed Management Area Grant Deadline Nears”
Watch For Hemlock Woolly Adelgid
By Linda Williams, Forest Health Specialist, Woodruff;
Linda.Williams@wisconsin.gov, 920-360-0665
Landowners with hemlock and anyone who walks through or works in hemlock stands can help watch for signs of hemlock woolly adelgid (HWA).
This invasive insect has not yet been identified in Wisconsin, but it has been found in seven counties in Michigan’s Lower Peninsula. The insect sucks the sap of hemlock trees, and large populations can cause the decline and mortality of hemlock over 4 to 10 years, depending on the health of the tree and population levels of HWA. It’s vital to find infestations as early as possible to allow multiple options for control and management.
Slime Mold: Mysterious And Amazing
By Linda Williams, Forest Health Specialist, Woodruff;
Linda.Williams@wisconsin.gov, 920-360-0665
What can learn new things, move toward and acquire food, remember where food was and what foods are preferred, figure out the shortest route through a maze, remember where it has traveled and seem to disappear as quickly as it first appeared?
It’s slime mold, of course!
Forget About Planting Forget-me-nots
By Erika Segerson-Mueller, DNR Invasive Plant Program Specialist, Oshkosh Service Center;
Erika.SegersonMueller@wisconsin.gov or 715-492-0391
A forest road is covered by a blanket of Woodland forget-me-not. / Photo Credit: Caleb Slemmons, National Ecological Observatory Network, Bugwood.org
These easy-to-grow, sweet-sounding, small blue flowers may seem appealing, but you should forget about forget-me-nots. A garden plant frequently found in mixed bouquets, forget-me-nots can easily escape the confines of a garden and spread aggressively.
There are two species regulated as invasives in Wisconsin: an Aquatic forget-me-not (Myosotis scorpiodes) and Woodland forget-me-not (Myosotis sylvatica). Both species are restricted under Wisconsin’s Invasive Species Rule NR40, so control is encouraged if they are found on your property. These species cannot be transferred, transported or introduced without a permit.
Both the aquatic and woodland species of forget-me-not bloom in early spring and can share many visual characteristics. Continue reading “Forget About Planting Forget-me-nots”
Sign Up For Oak Wilt Vector Emergence Emails
By Kyoko Scanlon, Forest Pathologist, Fitchburg;
Kyoko.Scanlon@wisconsin.gov
With the recent warm-up and little snow on the ground in February, you may wonder if the insects responsible for transmitting oak wilt (oak wilt vectors) may emerge earlier this spring.
Though it is impossible to know precisely when they emerge, there is a tool that can be used to help you ease your anxiety a bit.
Continue reading “Sign Up For Oak Wilt Vector Emergence Emails”
‘In The Weeds’ With Invasives Tech
By Erika Segerson-Mueller, DNR Invasive Plant Program Specialist, Oshkosh;
Erika.SegersonMueller@wisconsin.gov or 715-492-0391
While not native to the Midwest, popular garden plants such as tulips and daffodils do not spread outside of gardens or cause harm, therefore they are not invasive. / Photo Credit: Lesley Ingram, Bugwood.org
As the conversation around invasive plants grows, it’s easy to get “stuck in the weeds” when it comes to invasive terminology.
A simple Google search of “invasive plant” will produce a variety of definitions, bringing in technicalities or muddying your understanding with each new idea of what invasive means. Continue reading “‘In The Weeds’ With Invasives Tech”
Cutworms Active In February Snow
By Michael Hillstrom, Forest Health Specialist, Fitchburg; Michael.Hillstrom@wisconsin.gov
Caterpillars wandering the snow in February? Yes, the “winter cutworm,” Noctua pronuba, is a hardy species that is sometimes observed active in temperatures as low as the 20s.
Millions Of Cicadas Preparing To Emerge
By Michael Hillstrom, Forest Health Specialist, Fitchburg;
Michael.Hillstrom@wisconsin.gov
Closeup of a periodical cicada, showing its black body and orange-colored wing veins and legs. / Photo Credit: Ward Upham, Kansas State University, Bugwood.org
2024 will be a big year for periodical cicadas (Magicicada spp.).
For the first time since 1803 — when Thomas Jefferson was president — 13-year Brood XIX and 17-year Brood XIII cicadas will co-emerge in the millions.
If you want to observe this spectacle, you can see the Brood XIII cicadas in southern Wisconsin. Expect to see and hear them in June, and bring your ear protection because some of the louder choruses of males can reach 90 decibels.
Emerald Ash Borer Spreads Through The North
By Paul Cigan, DNR Forest Health Specialist, Hayward;
https://dnr.wisconsin.gov/topic/foresthealth/staff, 715-416-4920
This winter, the spread and impact of emerald ash borer (EAB) have been confirmed in several new northern townships in previously invaded counties.
These include Marengo (Ashland County); Gordon, Hawthorne and Oakland (Douglas County); Cadott and Colburn (Chippewa County) and Balsam Lake and St. Croix Falls (in Polk County).
Continue reading “Emerald Ash Borer Spreads Through The North”