HRM plants trees but warns others could come down due to invasive emerald ash borer
Below the branches or above the tree tops, Halifax’s trees stand out.
“This is the city of trees. It's beautiful,” said Kevin Osmond, the senior supervisor of Urban Forestry with the Halifax Regional Municipality.
Woven into the fabric of the city, the canopy tells a story.
Old elms rest in the older neighbourhoods. New oaks in new ones.
The Halifax Regional Municipality planted 3,100 trees this year and last.
But as more trees go into the ground, some may have to come out as ash trees in the Bedford-area face a continued threat from the emerald ash borer -- an invasive insect that kills ash trees.
According to Osmond, the beetle has infested trees across Bedford from Southgate to Sunnyside Mall.
Ash trees make up about two to three per cent of the trees in the HRM.
“Fortunately for us, with emerald ash borer, we’re not going to lose that many trees,” Osmond said.
“Unfortunately, a lot the ash in HRM are on private property. So, there are a lot of backyard ash that are going to succumb to emerald ash borer.”
Osmond said the belief is the beetle came in on the rail line.
So far, not many trees have been taken down.
“But there will be,” Osmond said.
The telltale signs of an infected tree is bark falling off and little holes in the tree.
“It usually kills a tree within two to three years,” he said.
There are some local companies that inoculate trees, but Osmond said, if the insect has already entered the tree, it’s already too late.
Aborist Brian Phalen, the co-owner of Scotia Horticulture Solutions, has been busy responding to calls from homeowners and commercial properties.
He injects an insecticide treatment called TreeAzin into ash trees — mostly as a preventative measure.
“We’re quite busy,” Phalen said. “The treatment window is basically the flight of the adult stage, so in and around Halifax, it's July 1 to Aug. 31, give or take a couple of days.”
Osmond said the HRM is building a plan to deal with ash trees.
“The ones that we take down we'll be replacing as soon as we can,” he said.
Signs of the emerald ash borer include loss of leaves, serpentine marks under the bark, exit holes, splitting bark and increased woodpecker activity.
The HRM is encouraging anyone who has an ash tree to pay close attention.
If the tree shows any symptoms, Osmond notes homeowners should call an arborist who can suggest if the tree is infested and may need to be cut down.
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
Chemical spill could be cause of stinky water in Puslinch, Ont., new report says
People living in Puslinch, Ont. may have the answer to why their water smelled so bad last year.
Maple Leafs eliminated from NHL playoffs with Game 7 OT loss to Bruins
Sheldon Keefe told his players hockey history would remember them one way or another.
Trudeau 'absolutely' best person to lead the Liberals in next election: LeBlanc says
Cabinet minister Dominic LeBlanc insists he's not planning a leadership campaign to head the Liberal party, should current leader and Prime Minister Justin Trudeau resign, seemingly quashing rumours he's planning to make a move for his boss' job.
‘Love has no boundaries’: Sask. couple in their 90s and 80s get married
Eighty-two-year-old Susan Neufeldt and 90-year-old Ulrich Richter are no spring chickens, but their love blossomed over the weekend with their wedding at Pine View Manor just outside of Rosthern.
Should you save or splurge on makeup this summer?
If you're wondering whether you should splurge or save when it comes to buying skincare products and makeup this summer, we got some answers for you.
No proof man lied to brother about number of kittens born in litter, B.C. tribunal rules
A man was denied a $5,000 payout from his brother after a B.C. tribunal dismissed his claim disputing how many kittens were born in a litter.
Work stoppage possible as WestJet issues lockout notice to maintenance engineers' union
A lockout notice issued by WestJet to a union representing aircraft maintenance engineers could result in a work stoppage next week.
Ukraine marks its third Easter at war as it comes under fire from Russian drones and troops
As Ukraine marked its third Easter at war, Russia on Sunday launched a barrage of drones concentrated in Ukraine's east, wounding more than a dozen people, and claimed its troops took control of a village they had been targeting.
opinion You don't need to be an influencer to earn income from social media
How legitimate are claims by some content creators that the average person can earn passive income from social media platforms like TikTok and Instagram? Personal finance columnist Christopher Liew says it's quite possible, if you're willing to put in the initial time and effort.