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Webinar: Restoring Green Ash: Breeding for Resistance to the Emerald Ash Borer
The invasion of emerald ash borer (Agrilus planipennis) threatens the survival of green ash (Fraxinus pennsylvanica) in the United States, where it is extensively used for soil conservation, rural water management and in urban green spaces. Long term monitoring of permanent plots in EAB infested natural forests identified surviving green ash trees, or “lingering” ash trees, that had maintained healthy canopies for at least two years after all other ash trees (greater than 10 cm DBH) had died. EAB egg bioassay experiments confirmed that these trees possess an increased level of resistance due to multiple types of host defense responses, including impairment of larval development and reduced adult feeding preference of foliage. Results of ongoing genetic studies will be discussed as well as the application of these findings to the development of a breeding program for green ash and other threatened ash species.
Presenter: Jennifer Koch, Ph.D., Research Biologist, Northern Research Station, USDA Forest Service