Boxwoods with yellow to brown leaves are common this spring in a number of locations in Ohio. Some of the leaf browning is due to winter injury; some was caused by salt damage. However, a close examination may also reveal the telltale blister-like leaf symptoms caused by the boxwood leafminer.

Ohio State University Extension's Home Yard and Garden FactSheet HYG-1032 has been update and is available online. The OSU FactSheet includes tips for selecting an arborist and resources available to help find an arborist.  

I spotted one of my favorite insect predators darting about on a forest trail yesterday: six-spotted tiger beetles. Their common name is well justified as these tiny "tigers" hunt, kill, and eat other insects. They are equipped with huge eyes for excellent eyesight, long legs for agile speed, and huge mandibles for grabbing prey.

Spring has sprung and one of the first flowering trees and shrubs in Northeastern Ohio are Magnolias.

Overwintered eastern tent caterpillar (ETC) (Malacosoma americanum) moth eggs are hatching in southwest Ohio; a sure sign that spring has sprung. As their common name implies, the caterpillars are accomplished tent-makers displaying their silk handiwork in branch forks.

Dalton Westerbeck with Spring Grove Cemetery and Arboretum e-mailed me Wednesday to report that soil "mining bees" are waking from their winter naps. Dalton is an ISA Certified Arborist and an Ohio State Beekeepers Association, Master Beekeeper. He is locating and marking all of the mining bee "colonies" in the Grove so he can document their population densities and seasonal development.

Purple deadnettle is beginning to show up in landscapes now that spring has arrived and the temperature is getting warmer. A winter annual, purple deadnettle is germinating now from the seeds they produced last year.

I received an e-mail message over the weekend from a homeowner asking what kind of beetles could be emerging from firewood stored in an unheated garage. I replied there were two strong candidates: painted hickory borers and banded ash borers. In response, the homeowner sent some very clear pictures yesterday: they were painted hickory borers.

Old man winter plays a cruel joke on Northeast Ohio with 3-5 inches of snow. This was just in time for April Fool’s day, which just happens to coincide with the Cleveland Indians Home Opener this year.

As temperatures warm, people are outside enjoying the almost, spring-like weather. There are still a few waiting for even warmer temperatures to arrive and stick around for more than a day - you know who you are. As everyone migrates outdoors as temperatures rise, the chances of an insect encounter will be pretty high. At the first encounter, many people may have an urge to "eliminate" the six legged species.