Recently FORECON, Inc. has completed treatments to suppress the Hemlock Woolly Adelgid in Buttermilk Falls, Robert H. Treman and Letchworth Falls State Parks in New York. Nearly 28,000 diameter inches were treated within the three parks. The FORECON team used a basal bark treatment where the lower 5 feet of each tree’s bole is sprayed to the point of run off with two different pesticides called Imidacloprid and Dinotefuran. This method allows you to target single stems without the worry of affecting non-target species.
As per the NYS DEC, the “Hemlock Woolly Adelgid, or HWA, is an invasive, aphid-like insect that attacks North American hemlocks. HWA are very small (1.5 mm) and often hard to see, but they can be easily identified by the white woolly masses they form on the underside of branches at the base of the needles. These masses, or ovisacs, can contain up to 200 eggs and remain present throughout the year. Once hatched, juvenile HWA, known as crawlers, search for suitable sites on the host tree, usually at the base of the needles. They insert their long mouthparts and begin feeding on the tree’s stored starches. HWA remain in the same spot for the rest of their lives, continually feeding and developing into adults. Their feeding severely damages the canopy of the host tree by disrupting the flow of nutrients to its twigs and needles. Tree health declines, and mortality usually occurs within 4 to 10 years.” https://www.dec.ny.gov/animals/7250.html
FORECON has been on the forefront of Hemlock Woolly Adelgid suppression since 2014, treating multiple thousands of trees from the Finger Lakes region all the way to Allegheny National Forest in northwestern Pennsylvania. Should you have any questions or interest in our spraying program, please don’t hesitate to contact us at (716) 664-5602 OR use the form below to submit a request.