Trees dripping with winter moth and gypsy moth caterpillars?

The double-barreled attack of winter moth and gyspy moth caterpillars has New England in its slimy grasp. Arborjet CEO Peter M. Wild, a Certified Arborist, offers some R&R (Rescue and Recovery) tips to help your trees survive this onslaught.

[ClickPress, Fri Jun 02 2006] Trees dripping with winter moth and gypsy moth caterpillars? Many New Englanders, looking forward to the greening out of their trees will be disappointed this spring as voracious winter moth caterpillars, followed by equally insatiable gypsy moth caterpillars, munch away at budding leaves, leaving defoliated, skeleton-like trees in their wake. The hardest hit area is Newburyport to Cape Cod - inside the Route 495 belt.

Peter M. Wild, Certified Arborist and CEO of Arborjet, which specializes in the research and development of environmentally friendly target specific treatment formulations designed exclusively for minimally invasive tree trunk injection, offers some R&R— Rescue and Recovery— tips for trees suffering from the latest onslaught of winter moth and gypsy moth caterpillars.

Rescue and Recovery
Many deciduous trees in New England are constantly under stress from the effects of several cycles of winter moth and gypsy moth destruction. Most trees will valiantly try to put out a new set of leaves after being hit by winter moth caterpillars in May, and gypsy moth caterpillars in June. This results in a second spate of stunted and uneven leaf growth. Trees become exhausted from this effort and eventually the trees roots start to die.

Treatment of the after effects of this vicious cycle includes two key components: water and food, both of which are critical to the long-term survival of stressed trees. Generous watering of a tree at its base, particularly if drought conditions set in during midsummer, is critical to fall root growth. In addition trees need to be supplemented with food, not stimulants.

Most chemical based fertilizers contain high degrees of nitrogen, which, notes Wild, “is like giving a tree caffeine—it encourages an artificial hyped up spurt of growth, without any sustenance. Wild recommends the application of organic, humate-based products such as organic compost teas, which will provide the proper nutrition to sustain the tree over time by promoting fall root growth.

Shooting Up, ACE-jet in action in Metro Boston
Arborjet is currently treating heritage trees (over 32” in diameter) in the metro Boston area with ACE-jet injections, which are specifically designed for effective treatment of leaf chewing insects such as the winter moth caterpillars and the gypsy moth caterpillars.

The dramatic effect of seeing thousands of caterpillars drop to the ground after a single injection, without any chemicals being spewed into the air, provides vivid testimony to the efficacy of the Arbojet microinfusion system of tree treatment. One injection of ACE-jet in the fall provides residual protection of a tree from the devastating effects of winter moth and gypsy moth caterpillars for up to one year.

Arborjet – Revolutionary Plant Injection System
Arborjet specializes in controlling invasive insect pests and diseases in trees. Founded in 2000 by Peter M. Wild, Certified Arborist and owner of Boston Tree Preservation (Winchester, MA), Arborjet has a fully staffed laboratory and field research team dedicated to providing tree care professionals with the best products available and continually striving to improve upon their excellence.

The company promotes tree health care through the use of proactive intervention with products for arborists that address and promote nutrition and control within the same formulation Arborjet is responsible for devising a minimally invasive technology (known as the Arborjet trademarked Microinfusion System) in response to the threat of New England’s insect infestation of the Hemlock Woolly Adelgid, which threatens a $500 billion industry.

With a mission “to bring the injection industry into the 21st century to preserve the natural and urban forest and promote agricultural health in an efficient and environmentally friendly way,” Arborjet provides environmentally friendly, injection plant solutions that minimize wounding and control invasive insect pests and diseases that threaten natural and urban forests.

Arborjet is headquartered at 99 Blueberry Road in Woburn, Massachusetts. For more information, contact the company Toll Free at 1-866-ARBORJT (1-866-272-6758) or visit their website at www.arborjet.com.

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