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A Smartphone App May Be The Next Front In The War Against The Emerald Ash Borer

USDA
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https://www.flickr.com/photos/usdagov/

Open the Purdue Tree Doctor app and select the kind of tree you’re having trouble with. Then scroll through several pictures to determine which ones look like your tree. The app will tell you what the problem most likely is and give you recommendations on how to fix it.

Purdue entomologist Cliff Sadof helped create the app that he says will particularly help with the invasive emerald ash borer, that’s been wreaking havoc on trees throughout Indiana.

“Our goal is to tell people that emerald ash borer can kill a tree and that acting early in the process, when trees are starting to die in your area, before your tree starts dying, gives you your best shot at protecting your tree,” Sadof says.

Sadof says catching a tree infected by the ash borer when it’s lost 20-percent of its leaves rather than 40-percent, can make the difference between whether the tree lives or dies, so he hopes the app will help homeowners notice problems before it’s too late.

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