Pine tree care in Houston and the woodlands, Pine tree Beetles control  pine beetle treatments

Are you noticing dead pine trees. There are five different species of bark beetles which infest pine trees

The dendroctonus species of bark beetles feed on pine trees, although they will also occasionally choose to infest spruce or larch trees as well. Pine trees can be weakened by bark beetles, or infestation may become so severe as to kill off the entire tree.

Pine bark beetles may have infested your tree if you note that the tree has needles around the crown which have yellowed, or gradually gone from yellow to a brownish or reddish orange. You may also note small holes within the body of the tree trunk or  pitch around those holes. The beetles spend much of their time underneath cover of the bark so are rarely seen. .

How do they hatch

The duration from egg to adult stages ranges from 26 to 54 days, depending upon the season. The beetles may have as few as three generations and as many as seven generations in Texas. The beetles overwinter inside trees at all stages. In the spring when the dogwoods bloom, adults begin to fly. Females land on host trees, 2 - 9 m off the ground, bore through the bark.

They produce a pheromone that attracts males and females together to attack the tree en mass. Females begin building egg galleries. Mating takes place in the gallery followed by female egg laying.

Pine bark beetles will attack the middle and upper portions of the body of the trunk of the pine tree. It is here where the adult bark beetles burrow and create tunnels in the meat of the tree. It also where the females locate and lay their eggs for hatching. Once larvae hatch, they begin tunneling through the bark and feeding on it. It is through this process that they then pupate within the tunnels and emerge from the small holes as mature, adult bark beetles. Having a few beetles within the tree will only weaken it due to the holes and tunnels created by this process. However, eventually this process of breeding and feeding may result in a large enough beetle population to kill off the tree. The more pitch tubes you find, the larger population of bark beetles you have.

What can you do about it?

 You have two choices Nmc woodlands tree care has a special injection method of controlling and killing the   beetles we are a distributor of a special product in Houston that other companies don't have.

Or You must remove the severely infested tree as soon as possible. If there is evidence of an extreme amount of bark beetles, the pine tree will have been sufficiently weakened that it cannot survive.

 There is a spaying method for control of the beetles that most other companies use, it is often ineffective, ask us if we come to your house and we will tell you why its ineffective.

If there are only a moderate number of pitch tubes, you may be able to smash tubes with a heavy rubber mallet - this is less damaging to the tree than metal. If you smash with the mallet near the tunnels you may very well squash the insect beneath in their galleries. Then spray the trunk of the tree with lindane containing insecticide. Further  watering it thoroughly every 4 to 6 weeks, and diligently ever 4 weeks in drier months. You want to avoid injury to the trunk and tree roots, so be careful with the mallet. Beetles are also attracted by pine trimmings and cut pine wood near the trunks of trees, so removal of such piles with help prevent drawing them to healthy pines.