Bands have been placed around ash trees in town in an annual attempt to control the Western ash bark beetle.

This is the third year for the pest control efforts and this year, Town of Okotoks Urban Forest Specialist Gordon White says 761 white and green ash trees have been banded in town.

The bands are foil, backed with insulation, which are taped to the trees and covered with a non-toxic, sticky substance. White says the goal is to limit the amount of deadwood in the town's ash trees, due to infestation by the beetle.

"The adult bark beetle overwinters in the bark on the trunk of the tree and in the spring it crawls up the trunk of the tree to the canopy to lay its eggs in the smaller twigs and branches on the ends," White says. "Then that larvae eats underneath the bark layer and causes branches to die back."

The sticky bands trap the adults as they attempt to crawl up the tree to lay their eggs, preventing them from completing their life cycle.

White says the procedure is a way to try to control the native insect pest without the use pesticides.

"The reason we started doing it is because there's no pesticides approved for Western ash bark beetle," he says. "And we also want to try and reduce the need to use pesticides that maybe pose a threat to people and the environment. So, this is a cultural control, and 'cultural' meaning does not use pesticides."

White points out that Mountain Ash trees are part of the Rose family and are not affected by the Western ash bark beetle. He says homeowners with ash trees in their backyards can use banding as well, but he also says that regular maintenance goes along way in helping the tree protect itself from infestation.

"It's important to keep your trees healthy by mulching and supplemental watering," White says. "Most trees, if they're healthy then can fight off minor or even moderate attacks of insects and such."

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