I wish the answer to this question was straight forward but it's not. A lot depends on timing, the perceived value of the trees involved and the availability of $$$ to potentially treat the infestation.
First you must access the nature and extent of the attack. Are we dealing with 1 tree or many more? Are there a handful of hits on the tree or hundreds, is the attack in progress or did it take place last summer or fall? The answer to all of these questions are important in determining a successful response to the problem.
Let me be clear from the onset. The only long term winning strategy against Mountain Pine and other bark beetles is not to have them attack your trees in the first place either through preventative spraying or through the application of pheromone repellents.
Field Work:
a) Accessing the nature and extent of the attack. You will need a pencil, paper, plastic marking tape (do not use the same color you use to mark your trees for preventative spraying, blue is a good choice) and a small campers axe. Walk your property; if you have beetles in one tree you very well may have them in others. Identify any attacked trees with the tape. Look the trunks over closely, high and low look for signs of attack, pitch tubes, frass, browning needle tips, discolored needles or other signs of tree stress. Note the total tree numbers, tree health and extent of the attacks.
b) The next step is to determine the approximate age of the attacks i.e. fresh attacks, last years etc. Is it fall or spring? If pitch tubes or frass are present note if they are fresh or wet looking and gooey or are they dry and hard? Next look for exit holes above and around the attack holes which help indicate if the tree is currently brooding beetles. If you suspect the tree is brooding beetles take your axe and remove a small section of bark above one or more of what appear to be a successful attack or pitch tubes. Look for beetles underneath the bark note the stage of development of any beetles found, note the presence or absence of blue stain fungus and attempt to identify what type of beetle did the attack i.e. Mountain Pine, Ips Pini or other.
Treatment Considerations:
Post attack treatment of your trees can have multiple outcomes and there is no assurance that:
a) The tree will survive the beetle’s attack and the subsequent attack of the Blue Stain fungus.
b) The treatment will kill the beetles brooding within the tree.
c) The treatment will prevent the beetles from emerging from the infected tree and infecting adjacent unprotected trees.
Post attack treatment can have much higher success rates and better outcomes if:
a) Attacked trees are treated as quickly as possible after the attack has begun.
b) Attacked trees are treated within the same season as the attacks occurred.
c) Trees are treated while brooding beetles are still immature.
d) Trees are still healthy and actively transpiring.
Treatment Options:
a) Removal of any infested trees from site prior to beetle flight.
b) Down and limb any infested trees, pile and chemically or solar treat logs then cover to kill emerging beetles.
c) Attempt to treat trees with Safari/Pentra Bark insecticide in an attempt to kill beetles within the tree and save the tree.
Safari/Pentra Bark Treatment:
The application of Safari Insecticide with the surfactant Pentra Bark has shown great promise in Lodgepole Pines for post attack treatment of Mountain Pine beetle. This application is still considered experimental in other pine species like Ponderosa, Austrian, Bristlecone and others.
Timing is critical! Best results can be predicted when application takes place within several weeks from the occurrence of the attack and while the tree is still healthy and actively transpiring.
Application is done via basal bark treatment and is simple. The diluted Safari/Pentra Bark mixture is applied with a low pressure hand or backpack sprayer to the lower 5’ of the trees trunk to the point of saturation but not runoff. The surfactant Pentra Bark carries the Safari through the bark of the tree to the xylem where it is carried throughout the tree to kill the beetles. This application is dependent on the tree being healthy enough to transpire the insecticide. If the tree shows signs of stress prior to application then the application may be doomed. In addition to the basal application of Safari/Pentra Bark you may want to consider a root drench application of ODC Colloidal Chitosan and watering to promote additional sap production and better transpiration of the insecticide through the tree.
As mentioned above there are many factors that will affect the success of this application and it carries no guarantee. If however you have high value trees that have been attacked this may be your only option to attempt to save the trees. If you have additional questions or concerns regarding this treatment please feel free to contact us or post your questions and concerns in our forum.
First you must access the nature and extent of the attack. Are we dealing with 1 tree or many more? Are there a handful of hits on the tree or hundreds, is the attack in progress or did it take place last summer or fall? The answer to all of these questions are important in determining a successful response to the problem.
Let me be clear from the onset. The only long term winning strategy against Mountain Pine and other bark beetles is not to have them attack your trees in the first place either through preventative spraying or through the application of pheromone repellents.
Field Work:
a) Accessing the nature and extent of the attack. You will need a pencil, paper, plastic marking tape (do not use the same color you use to mark your trees for preventative spraying, blue is a good choice) and a small campers axe. Walk your property; if you have beetles in one tree you very well may have them in others. Identify any attacked trees with the tape. Look the trunks over closely, high and low look for signs of attack, pitch tubes, frass, browning needle tips, discolored needles or other signs of tree stress. Note the total tree numbers, tree health and extent of the attacks.
b) The next step is to determine the approximate age of the attacks i.e. fresh attacks, last years etc. Is it fall or spring? If pitch tubes or frass are present note if they are fresh or wet looking and gooey or are they dry and hard? Next look for exit holes above and around the attack holes which help indicate if the tree is currently brooding beetles. If you suspect the tree is brooding beetles take your axe and remove a small section of bark above one or more of what appear to be a successful attack or pitch tubes. Look for beetles underneath the bark note the stage of development of any beetles found, note the presence or absence of blue stain fungus and attempt to identify what type of beetle did the attack i.e. Mountain Pine, Ips Pini or other.
Treatment Considerations:
Post attack treatment of your trees can have multiple outcomes and there is no assurance that:
a) The tree will survive the beetle’s attack and the subsequent attack of the Blue Stain fungus.
b) The treatment will kill the beetles brooding within the tree.
c) The treatment will prevent the beetles from emerging from the infected tree and infecting adjacent unprotected trees.
Post attack treatment can have much higher success rates and better outcomes if:
a) Attacked trees are treated as quickly as possible after the attack has begun.
b) Attacked trees are treated within the same season as the attacks occurred.
c) Trees are treated while brooding beetles are still immature.
d) Trees are still healthy and actively transpiring.
Treatment Options:
a) Removal of any infested trees from site prior to beetle flight.
b) Down and limb any infested trees, pile and chemically or solar treat logs then cover to kill emerging beetles.
c) Attempt to treat trees with Safari/Pentra Bark insecticide in an attempt to kill beetles within the tree and save the tree.
Safari/Pentra Bark Treatment:
The application of Safari Insecticide with the surfactant Pentra Bark has shown great promise in Lodgepole Pines for post attack treatment of Mountain Pine beetle. This application is still considered experimental in other pine species like Ponderosa, Austrian, Bristlecone and others.
Timing is critical! Best results can be predicted when application takes place within several weeks from the occurrence of the attack and while the tree is still healthy and actively transpiring.
Application is done via basal bark treatment and is simple. The diluted Safari/Pentra Bark mixture is applied with a low pressure hand or backpack sprayer to the lower 5’ of the trees trunk to the point of saturation but not runoff. The surfactant Pentra Bark carries the Safari through the bark of the tree to the xylem where it is carried throughout the tree to kill the beetles. This application is dependent on the tree being healthy enough to transpire the insecticide. If the tree shows signs of stress prior to application then the application may be doomed. In addition to the basal application of Safari/Pentra Bark you may want to consider a root drench application of ODC Colloidal Chitosan and watering to promote additional sap production and better transpiration of the insecticide through the tree.
As mentioned above there are many factors that will affect the success of this application and it carries no guarantee. If however you have high value trees that have been attacked this may be your only option to attempt to save the trees. If you have additional questions or concerns regarding this treatment please feel free to contact us or post your questions and concerns in our forum.