Birch borer help

Tucker943

Bamboo Plantation Owner

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Dec 14, 2007

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8,713

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Northeast PA

• Sep 20, 2012

• #1

I need help. This birch is getting hammered. The tops of the leaders are turning stone cold from the borers. I dont know what kind they are to determine the treatment I'll use. Theres so much sap running out of the borer holes that the tree was covered in bees. The groups of borer holes are concentrated on every major leader, about 2/3 of the way up the tree.

Look closely and you'll see the problem

 

Burnham

Woods walker

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Mar 7, 2005

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Western Oregon

• Sep 20, 2012

• #2

Looks like the damage red-shafted sapsuckers do here...the bird, ya know .

 

DMc

TreeHouser

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Jun 2, 2008

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3,186

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Montana

• Sep 20, 2012

• #3

Burnham said:

Looks like the damage red-shafted sapsuckers do here...the bird, ya know .

Click to expand...

Yup! Random holes = bugs, holes made in patterns = birds. Recommend treating with a hammock and an air rifle.

Dave

 

Husabud

TreeHouser

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Cape Cod

• Sep 20, 2012

• #4

I agree, sapsucker of some sort. I just got called for a removal of a huge Willowbecause of " some beetle" turned out to be sap sucker. I am going to prune out the dead and wait for Hitchcock.

 

squisher

THE CALM ONE!!!!

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Vernon, B.C.

• Sep 20, 2012

• #5

Up here it's BBB bronze birch borer and the bird is looking for the larvae as well as creating the perfect habitat for the bug. Pretty much a removal or a multi-part removal if the people want to retain it for a few years. In these parts anyways.

 

Tucker943

Bamboo Plantation Owner

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• Sep 20, 2012

• Thread Starter Thread Starter
• #6

So what is the sap sucker feeding on is what I want to figure out.....

 

Tucker943

Bamboo Plantation Owner

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• Sep 20, 2012

• Thread Starter Thread Starter
• #7

I want to take away the birds food. The customer does really.

 

Husabud

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Cape Cod

• Sep 20, 2012

• #8

http://forestry.about.com/od/foresthealth/p/woodpecker.htm

This may help.

 

squisher

THE CALM ONE!!!!

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Vernon, B.C.

• Sep 20, 2012

• #9

It's feeding on the borer and around here that tree would be doomed. BBB dies from the top down as you described. Cut back to live wood/lateral if your customer is wanting to retain it. But as I said before up here it would be a multi-part removal if they want to keep it around.

 

squisher

THE CALM ONE!!!!

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Vernon, B.C.

• Sep 20, 2012

• #10

On a birch I'm fairly certain that sapsucker is going after borers, not sap. It's the secondary, in doing it's thing it's creating the perfect habitat for the borers to multiply.

 

Tucker943

Bamboo Plantation Owner

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• Sep 20, 2012

• Thread Starter Thread Starter
• #11

Im fairly sure its borers, but needed your advice. They refuse a removal at this point. So, Ill shoot the tree with Imicide that I have enough of and go from there. I believe its a removal in the making but if they insist on trying another route first, Ill let them.

 

squisher

THE CALM ONE!!!!

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Vernon, B.C.

• Sep 20, 2012

• #12

I've pruned them out lots to retain them for awhile longer, the odd one seems to do ok. Your pics look kinda bad though and if it's declining fast I bet it's a goner.