Tag Archive: Forest Health Impacts

Fighting Bugs with Bugs

Fighting Bugs with Bugs

December 9, 2022 - By Cory Swift-Turner, Communications Specialist Eastern hemlock (Tsuga canadensis) is a coniferous tree that favors the cool and humid climate along the Appalachian Mountains. Hemlocks can grow more than 150 feet tall and live for more than 800 years. Their short, dense needles provide excellent habitat for many kinds of wildlife, from warblers to bobcats. Unfortunately, healthy hemlocks are becoming increasingly rare. In the early 1950s, an invasive insect called... Read More

A Prickly Problem

A Prickly Problem

October 5, 2022 - By Ellen Powell, DOF Conservation Education Coordinator Did you know that one of Virginia’s State Forests was established specifically for research on a single species? That site is the Lesesne State Forest, located at the base of Three Ridges Mountain in Nelson County. The species is the iconic American chestnut (Castanea dentata). American chestnut was once so abundant and ecologically important that it was considered a foundation species. But in... Read More

Don't Judge a Tree by Its Color

Don’t Judge a Tree by Its Color

August 25, 2022 - A Brief Guide to Late Summer Tree Pests By Amanda Conrad, DOF Forest Health Technician As the summer heat fades and autumn looms right around the corner, you may notice some changes to leaves that have nothing to do with the seasons. Late summer provides a unique setting for forest and tree pests that go mostly unnoticed until this time of year. One such pest, the fall webworm (Hyphantria cunea),... Read More

Ghosts of Forests Past

Ghosts of Forests Past

July 6, 2022 - By Ken Sterner, DOF Senior Area Forester, and Josh Bennicoff, DOF Nursery Manager In eastern Mathews County, on the Chesapeake Bay, near the community of Diggs, sits a patch of woodland called “Old House Woods.” It is probably one of the most haunted places in Virginia, the subject of legends and spooky tales. Numerous locals claim to have seen ghost ships floating overhead, ghosts of British Revolutionary War soldiers digging... Read More

Sounding the Fire (Ant) Alarm!

Sounding the Fire (Ant) Alarm!

May 26, 2022 - By Katlin Dewitt, DOF Forest Health Specialist Can a fire alarm alert you to an invasive insect? Technically, no, but it seems an appropriate way to raise awareness about the red imported fire ant! The red imported fire ant (RIFA) is native to central South America and was first detected in either Alabama or Florida between 1933 and 1945. In Virginia, this species was first detected in 1989, and so... Read More

Thinning Out Southern Pine Beetle

Thinning Out Southern Pine Beetle

April 7, 2022 - By Katlin Dewitt, DOF Forest Health Specialist The southern pine beetle (SPB) is the most destructive native insect that threatens pine forests in the Southeast. These tiny insects, about the size of a grain of rice as adults, are especially harmful due to the complex system of pheromones (insect “scents” that are specific to a species) they utilize to find host trees and aggregate. Pheromones allow populations to build up... Read More

Spotted Lanternfly Egg Mass Scouting - DIY!

Spotted Lanternfly Egg Mass Scouting – DIY!

February 23, 2022 - By Lori Chamberlin, DOF Forest Health Manager If you are in search of a fun winter activity, look no further! The spotted lanternfly (or SLF, for short), an invasive insect that was discovered in Virginia in 2018, continues to spread, and we need your help finding egg masses. Spotted lanternfly egg masses are laid in the fall, survive through the winter, and then hatch in the spring. Each egg mass... Read More

The Vine That Ate Charlottesville

The Vine That Ate Charlottesville

September 29, 2021 - By Ellen Powell, DOF Conservation Education Coordinator I know what you’re thinking. But no, the vine that ate Charlottesville isn’t kudzu. It’s porcelain-berry (Ampelopsis brevipedunculata). You might know this species as an ornamental vine, often seen spilling over pergolas in fancy gardens. It’s great for covering a bare patch of ground or an unsightly old shed. The fruits are quite beautiful, with pale green, lavender, magenta, and blue berries often... Read More

Laurel Wilt Confirmed in Virginia

Laurel Wilt Confirmed in Virginia

September 14, 2021 - By Katlin Dewitt, DOF Forest Health Specialist There is officially a new threat to Virginia’s forests. The USDA Diagnostic Lab confirmed laurel wilt disease (LWD) on September 9 from a sample collected on an impacted sassafras tree in Scott County. This was the first detection of this disease in Virginia, although it has been confirmed throughout much of the South and in our neighboring states of North Carolina, Tennessee, and... Read More