Water Your Trees Right Now!

An email message from three tree organizations had this subject line: "Epic Texas Drought - Water Trees Now!" It was sent to their members and said:

"Most of Texas is at the highest level of drought intensity and this is weakening and killing many landscape trees.

"We urge you to send a message/press release out to your customers, citizens, members and clients asking them to water their trees right now."

It was signed by Dr. Todd Watson, President of the Texas Chapter of the International Society of Arboriculture, Tom Boguus, State Forester and Director with the Texas Forest Service and Gary Woods, the President of the Texas Urban Forestry Council.

As a matter of fact, Oscar Mestas, the Texas Urban Forester for our region, came by this morning and looked at a number of trees in our neighborhood. Some had feared that bugs or disease was killing them. The real cause: lack of water. Water needs to soak slowly into the ground and soak for a long time.

The Texas Chapter of the International Society of Arboriculture offers great tips including watering during a severe drought. Also check out the U.S. Drought Monitor.

Wanted: Location of Soapberry Borer Infestations in Texas

Regional Urban Forester, Oscar Mestas is asking that if "in your travels or at home and around your cities, towns, parks etc., keep an eye out for soapberry borer infestation." The Texas Forest Service has sent out the following email alert:

The Texas Forest Service is attempting to determine the current distribution of the soapberry borer in Texas. The soapberry borer, Agrilus prionurus, is an invasive wood-boring beetle recently introduced from Mexico that has been attacking and killing western soapberry trees in various counties of Texas. If you spot dead or dying western soapberry trees, please report the following information to Dr. Ron Billings at rbillings@tfs.tamu.edu. If possible, attach digital photos of the bark chips, larval galleries, D-shaped exit holes or other signs of attack, together with a close-up photo of the tree’s leaves, so we can confirm the identity of the pest. Please see the attached descriptions if you are uncertain how to identify western soapberry or the damage this flatheaded wood borer causes. Thanks for your cooperation.

Name of observer: _____________________ County of infestation:______________________

Date first observed: ____________________

Address of infested tree(s) or GPS location if available:________________________________

Attack signs noted: ___ Dead soapberry tree with bark removed

(check all observed) ___ Dying soapberry tree with some yellow or green leaves

___ Chips of bark at base of tree

___ White larvae beneath the bark

___ Winding galleries beneath the bark

___ “D”-shaped exit holes in bark

___ Sprouting of new leaves along trunk

___ Adult soapberry borers

Number of trees infested: ______ Average diameter of trees infested: _______ inches

Are there uninfested soapberry trees (> 3” in DBH) at this site? ___ Yes; ____ No; ____ Don’t know

Return questionnaire by e-mail to rbillings@tfs.tamu.edu or regular mail to: Dr. Ronald F. Billings/Manager, Forest Pest Management/Texas Forest Service/301 Tarrow, Suite 364/College Station, TX 77840-7896. 979-458-6650

For better detail, click on any of the images above. Some might confuse soapberries with chinaberry trees. Do look at the detail.

Master Naturalist, Judy Ackerman reports: "There is a lovely stand of soapberry trees in the Tom May’s section of Franklin Mountains State Park. They are on the trail to Cottonwood Springs just across from the West Cottonwood Tin Mine."