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Owners of ash trees are faced with some potentially big decisions about how to protect their trees against the destruction of emerald ash borer. Although there is no perfect solution, insecticides are available to protect high-value trees. To help Iowans better understand their options, a group of specialists with Iowa State University Extension and Outreach recently published a guide called "Emerald Ash Borer Management Options." In this four-page resource, the specialists explain how to determine the value of ash trees, the cost of treatment and how to compare the different treatment options available.

After 12 years of research, a parasitic wasp that controls a highly destructive fruit fly will be released by Oregon State University agricultural scientists in June. Vaughn Walton, Extension entomologist and professor in the College of Agricultural Sciences, said the U.S. Department of Agriculture has permitted release of the wasp (Ganaspis brasiliensis), a slow process that took more than 10 years from application to decision. Now that it has a permit, Walton’s lab, which is part of the OSU Agricultural Experiment Station, is raising enough wasps to make a dent in the spotted wing drosophila (SWD) population in Oregon.

This handbook is intended as a ready reference guide to the control and management tactics for the more important plant diseases in the Pacific Northwest. The specific cultural, biological, and chemical recommendations are intended to manage a specific plant disease but may not always be appropriate under all production circumstances. The synthesis of a specific management recommendation should be done by a qualified individual. For this reason, this book should be used by—and has been expressly written for—county Extension agents, consultants, field and nursery people, and chemical industry representatives. Information in this publication is in a state of constant change.

See also: Pacific Northwest Plant Disease Management Handbook