Iowa Department of Agriculture says emerald ash borer has NOT spread to Winneshiek County

The Iowa Department of Agriculture says tests it conducted this spring and summer show the emerald ash borer has not moved outside of Allamakee County.

The pest, which kills ash trees, had been found in Iowa along the Mississippi River in Allamakee County in 2010.

This summer, nearly 1,200 purple sticky traps in an effort to monitor the spread of EAB.  Emerald ash borers were found in only two of those 1,200 traps--one each in traps in New Albin and in Lansing.

"We are pleased that other traps did not pick up any infestations outside of Allamakee County in our latest surveys." said State Entomologist Robin Pruisner.

The State of Iowa paid for airborne spraying last summer in Winneshiek County in an effort to halt the advance of the emerald ash borer.



The Iowa EAB Team continues to discourage homeowners more than fifteen miles from known infestations from treating their ash trees with insecticides to protect them from this pest. This would be nearly all of the state at this time. Unfortunately, some tree care companies are distributing inaccurate information and recommending insecticide treatments for healthy ash trees located as far away as central Iowa.

Iowa State University Extension and Outreach EAB management recommendations for homeowners are available at https://store.extension.iastate.edu/ItemDetail.aspx?ProductID=13114. 

The EAB Team in Iowa has been conducting annual surveys to determine if this pest is in Iowa since 2003.  Efforts have included visual surveys, sentinel trees, trap surveys, nursery stock inspections, sawmill/wood processing site visits, and educational programs.