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Health & Fitness

Dawn Vogelsberg: Geneva vs. Emerald Ash Borer

The city of Geneva has a proactive plan to deal with the Emerald Ash Borer.

It may seem the Emerald Ash Borer is working faster to infest ash trees than the city can counteract—but we have a plan, and it is already working.

The city of Geneva has implemented the City Emerald Ash Borer Management Plan. Geneva has an inventory of about 2,200 Ash Trees and, to date, 387 parkway trees already have been removed. The city will continue to remove infested parkway trees and replace with different species as funds are available. 

Residents can help expedite this process by identifying affected trees and reporting them.

Find out what's happening in Genevawith free, real-time updates from Patch.

How do you know if your tree is affected? 

It isn’t hard to tell if your ash tree is in trouble. Young shoots gradually start dying starting at the tips and progress to larger branches. D-shaped holes in the bark are present as the adult borer chews holes to exit. There will be an S-shaped gallery from the larva feeding between the bark and sapwood. Finally, if you look at the bark on the south side of the tree, you will see the damage from woodpeckers feasting on the larvae.  

Find out what's happening in Genevawith free, real-time updates from Patch.

What to do if you suspect that a tree is infected

If the tree is in the city’s parkway and it is a hazard because it is fully dead or large branches are falling from it, please call the Public Works Department at 630-232-1502.

If the parkway tree is affected but not a danger, you can notify the city through the “Request of City Service" system. CLICK HERE. You can use this system to report any parkway tree you determine to be infested and it will be evaluated and prioritized by the Public Works Department 

Together we can work together to beat the Emerald Ash Borer for our beautiful (and officially designated) Tree City.

For more comprehensive information please to city’s website at www.geneva.il.us.

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