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‘Cicadapalooza’ Makes Noise In Lake Geneva

Posted on by akabelowsky
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

Posted on by akabelowsky

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.

Continue reading “Pruning Can Control White Pine Blister Rust” →

Best Disposal Methods For Garlic Mustard

Posted on by akabelowsky

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

Posted on by akabelowsky

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

Posted on by akabelowsky

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

Posted on by akabelowsky

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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Unearthing The Ugly Truth About The Callery Pear

Posted on by janness

At first glance, the Callery pear (Pyrus calleryana) tree seems appealing, with its white blossoms in spring and colorful leaves in fall. Digging a little deeper, however, reveals the grim reality of this common urban tree. Once introduced for its ornamental value, this invasive species has become a significant threat to Wisconsin’s ecosystems. Continue reading “Unearthing The Ugly Truth About The Callery Pear” →

Teasing Out Invasive Teasels

Posted on by akabelowsky
Common teasel in bloom. The flowerheads of teasel species are distinct, unusually large, stiff and sturdy.

Common teasel in bloom. The flowerheads of teasel species are distinct, unusually large, stiff and sturdy. / Photo Credit: Steve Dewey, Utah State University, Bugwood.org

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

Two species of teasel are present in Wisconsin: common teasel (Dipsacus fullonum) and cut-leaved teasel (Dipsacus lacinatus). Although they are known today as invasive plants, their Latin names speak to a useful history.

The species name of common teasel (fullonum) comes from “to full,” a step in woolen clothmaking that involves using water and agitation. Teasels, native to Europe, were introduced to North America in the 1700s to be used in this manner by textile processors. The stiff and sturdy flower heads of teasel were used to comb the surface of damp cloth to give it a fluffier finish. Continue reading “Teasing Out Invasive Teasels” →

Retracted: Study Shows Drought Harms Wetter Forests Most

Posted on by akabelowsky

Note:

The original version of this Forest Health News article has been removed because the journal article in Science magazine that was referenced has been retracted by its authors due to a mathematical error. The journal authors reran their analysis and although many results remained unchanged, the statistical significance of some conclusions, and the results of some robustness tests, did change. It is unclear to what degree these errors affected observations in the Forest Health News article, so that article was removed. More information is available here.