August is Tree Check Month! Everyone is encouraged to take 10 minutes to check their trees for signs of the Asian longhorned beetle. To help you learn about the beetle, or to provide materials for your outreach needs, we’ve rounded up all the best free resources that we could find! General Information: Asian longhorned […]
On Monday August 21st 2017, a total eclipse of the sun will be visible in a roughly 70 mile wide swath (called the path of totality) crossing the entire contiguous United States of America. Millions of travelers are expected to camp out over the weekend so they can be in the best viewing area on […]
Guest blog by Mary Ann Bonnell, Visitor Services Manager for Jefferson County Open Space, Colorado. Is Offering FREE Firewood a Viable Solution for Pest Prevention? It’s working for Jefferson County Open Space in Colorado. In fact, the Jeffco Open Space (JCOS) free firewood program is setting up its visitors for success while managing healthy parks. […]
Guest blog by Paul Kingsbury, Director of Communications for The Nature Conservancy’s Tennessee Chapter In the summer of 2013, The Nature Conservancy’s Tennessee Chapter (TNC) and the Tennessee Department of Agriculture’s Division of Forestry (TDF) were facing a heavy lift. Emerald ash borer (EAB), spongy moth and hemlock woolly adelgid (HWA) had invaded the state and were […]
The political protests that took place this past winter in North Dakota surrounding the Dakota Access Pipeline were fueled, in the most literal sense, by thousands of cords of firewood from around the nation. Join us for a FOCI webinar on May 18th 2017 at 3pm Eastern, 2pm Central, 1pm Mountain, and noon Pacific to […]
Guest blog by Lori Spears, Invasive Species Survey Coordinator for Utah State University Extension Invasive species are a growing threat to our nation’s agricultural and natural resources. In Utah, nearly a dozen insect and disease pathogen pests have arrived over the last decade, including spotted wing drosophila (SWD) and brown marmorated stink bug (BMSB). These […]
Join us for a FOCI webinar, Don’t Move Firewood in the Western States, on April 27th at 1 p.m. MDT (3pm Eastern). This webinar will focus on the products and services of greatest interest to western state and federal agency communication directors. This webinar will be open to all, and will be recorded and published to […]
Guest blog by Corie Yanger, Rapid ʻŌhiʻa Death (ROD) Educational Specialist, University of Hawaiʻi Extension If you were to ask biologists and cultural practitioners in Hawaiʻi what the most important tree is in the state, “ʻōhiʻa” would likely be the answer. Not only does ʻōhiʻa (pronounced oh-hee-yah, or oh-hee-uh) cover roughly 1 million acres across the Hawaiian […]
This blog was originally posted on the Massachusetts Introduced Pests Outreach Blog on March 7th 2017. Though it’s cold outside now, the spring camping season is rapidly approaching! While many campers like to bring their own firewood to campsites, the invasive wood-boring insects Asian longhorned beetle (ALB) and emerald ash borer make frequent use of […]
Guest blog by Meredith Whitney, Forest Pest Outreach Coordinator with University of Vermont Extension Thousands of Vermonters come out of the woodwork every other year to witness the colors, smells, and excitement of the Vermont Flower Show. Upon arrival to the Champlain Valley Exposition in Essex Junction, Vermont visitors first walk through the main garden […]