The Invasive Shot Hole Borer?????_ (ISHB), an exotic and invasive ambrosia beetle, was recently found attacking a large number of tree species in Los Angeles, Orange, Riverside, and San Diego Counties, among others across the state.?????_ ISHB is reported to be reaching epidemic proportions and has widespread environmental, economic, and aesthetic implications for the region.

Arborjet?????_, a leading tree and plant health care company, has been working to help mitigate the devastation of invasive species and to save trees in over 150 municipalities across the country. Forward thinking, certified arborists and municipalities are using tree injections to ensure that neighborhoods and urban forests are safely maintained. Research shows that trunk injections with TREE-???_ge???? and Propizol not only help save trees but are also far more cost effective than removing and replacing mature trees.

According to the manufacturer, their advanced treatment method:
Injects and seals the formulation directly into a tree's vascular system. Nothing is placed in the soil or into the air.
Allows a tree to be treated for over 20 years if needed, before the costs equal that of removing and replacing a tree. Most cities retreat every 2 years.

Has allowed major cities like Chicago, Milwaukee and Claremont to save their trees for a cost of less than $80 per tree.
Saves mature trees, which?????_ help reduce CO2 in the atmosphere, absorb stormwater runoff, increase property values and provide many other important environmental and economic benefits.

Helping Pesticides Do Their Job Better
Recent research has found that a particular plant virus, or biological nanoparticle, can assist pesticide molecules travel farther underground than usual to target pests doing their damage on plant roots deep in the soil such as parasitic nematodes.

According to the University of California - San Diego, scientists there and at Case Western Reserve University were looking for a way of helping the normally sticky molecules of a pesticide penetrate deeper into the earth without the usual technique of just applying large amounts, which can cause dangerous buildup in the soil and groundwater.

Taking their cues from nanomedicine, in which nanoparticles are used to target drugs towards sites of disease, the researchers attached pesticide molecules to various biological nanoparticles, watered the soil and then traced their travel. They found that the tobacco mild green mosaic virus performed best as "it carried its cargo down to 30 centimeters below the surface."

This work was first published May 20 in the journal Nature Nanotechnology.

Plant Pest Quarantine in Sacramento
The California Department of Food and Agriculture reported that an Asian citrus psyllid (ACP) bug was spotted in Lemon Hill, an area south of Sacramento. The bug is known to carry huanglongbing, a non-curable citrus greening disease. As a result, the CDFA issued a travel quarantine in the county, prohibiting the movement of citrus fruits "from an affected area into an unaffected area" without first removing the stems and leaves and washing. https://tinyurl.com/y3ju53ev

Sprayers and Outdoor Pesticide Use
In a case that could have major impacts on pesticide use in environmentally conscientious California, a Maryland state appeals court recently validated a ban in Montgomery County placed on outdoor pesticide use, applied by either consumers or professionals, on private properties, which should lend some urgency to local contractors for exploring alternative pesticide control methods in case similar rulings take place here.