Yellow Poplar Trees Are Under Attack

Yellow Poplar Trees Are Under Attack I don’t know if you have noticed as you drive along I-79 the poplar tree’s look as if they are dying. Well they are not. They are under attack by a yellow-poplar weevil. This small bug looks like a small tick, as a matter of fact, they have been mistaken for a tick. These bugs are not new to the area, they have been around for years. Just not to a damaging level until sometime between n 1960 to 1968. It is not known why or how they became so damaging. The insect have become more apparent this year due to the fact the conditions were right for massive reproduction. The yellow-poplar weevil will only generate one time a year in the Ohio Valley. The insect will lay their eggs on the leaves and as the eggs hatch the larvae will burrow into the leaves and feed on the chlorophyll in the leaf, this is what makes the leaf turn brown and look like it is dying. These trees are not the only trees that were affected. The Sassafras tree, Southern Magnolia Tree, and the Sweet bay trees were also affected, however the poplar were the most apparent. The trees will not lose all of their leaves and once the massive reproduction is over the trees should return to normal. So no worries our most important tree in the Ohio Valley is not dying. By: Carrie Nicholas