Cicada Damage Appearing in NE Ohio
Reports of branch die back in many trees are coming into the Medina Extension Office from around the county. These brown patches are most likely the result of periodical cicadas laying eggs in the tender branches of trees. Cicadas prefer laying their eggs in young twigs about 1/4 to 1/2 inch in diameter. To lay their eggs, cicada stab a needle-like ovipositor into the branch that can cause these tender twigs to break, wither, and die. The resulting symptom is browning leaves at branch tips known as "flags" or "flagging". While larger trees have enough foliage to withstand tip dieback...