Ash trees are a great benefit to our communities, providing natural beauty, shade, clean filtered oxygen, nutrient recycling, and habitat for birds and wildlife. Sadly, they’ve been under attack for over a decade by the exotic insect pest, the emerald ash borer, whose larvae burrow under the bark and damage the trees’ nutrient uptake. That’s why it’s so important to detect the presence of this pest early and to treat unaffected ash trees and newly infected ones with a very effective injectable insecticide applied by a certified applicator. Replacing them with nursery trees can cost nearly as much as the insecticide treatments, when costs of removal and grinding or lumbering are included. Young trees are vulnerable to damage and will take many decades to reach optimal size.