.....When all the mature Ash trees die off the EAB will die off, correct? It appears that the EAB doesn’t bother the smaller Ash trees ( pinky size). What happens when the Ash sapling’s ( Suckers ) get bigger will there be a return of the EAB?....
In the long-term, yes, that is the expectation/theory. However the permanent research plots that OSU, MSU and the USFS have put in they are finding that after all of the big trees are long gone and the little ones have started to sprout that EAB finds them again when they are big enough - so the bug is not far enough away to not find those trees again. The sad part is that the little ones are killed before they are big enough to produce seeds and ash seeds do not persist in the soil - if they don't sprout in the first year or two, they never will. Based on what I have heard at seminars, read in the research I have kept up with, and discussed one-on-one with some of the researchers it looks like those seedlings are the last generation of naturally occuring ash. Give it another 15 years and we
may be able to get away with planting a few trees???
I would like to save the Black gum trees because it brings in the birds. I really should have an Arborist look at it, don’t know that cost either. The wood peckers are chipping away at the bark so there must be some kind of insect infecting it. I took some pictures of our Black gum tree and a few Ash trees just to share.
Is picture 4 the black gum? That looks like there is some concerning decay happening deeper into the tree. You should definately have a good arborist come look at it. Let them know you are looking for a consultation, not a removal estimate. Expect to pay between $50-$100 for that...