Junipers in southwest Ohio are being garnished with tangerine tentacles and orange goo; the calling cards of rust fungi. The three fungi producing the colorful displays belong to the genus Gymnosporangium and each must alternate between a member of the plant genus Juniperus and members of the rose family (Rosaceae) in order to complete their life cycle.

Wilting buckeyes may sound like an Ann Arbor dream, but I'm not talking about our beloved Silver Bullets. I'm referring to the symptoms caused by the Buckeye Petiole Borer (Zeiraphera claypoleana) on its namesake host.

Overwintered calico scale (Eulecanium cerasorum) females are now "puffing-up" and pumping out impressive quantities of clear, sugary honeydew in southwest Ohio. The appearance of the globular, helmet-shaped females coupled with complaints of trees oozing sticky goo makes this life-stage important for detecting new infestations. All other life-stages are much less obvious.

Common Chickweed (Stellaria media) is a European winter annual that is now found world-wide. Winter annuals are sneaky weeds. They produce seeds in the spring then plants fade away prior to the summer season; out of sight, out of mind. The seeds dodge spring applied preemergent herbicide bullets because they do not germinate until the fall. The resulting plants grow below our radar throughout the fall, winter, and early spring when we pay little attention to what's going on in our lawns and landscapes.

Poison Hemlock (Conium maculatum) is one of the deadliest plants in North America. This non-native invasive was imported as an ornamental in the late 1800s from Europe, West Asia, and North Africa. The plant contains highly toxic piperidine alkaloid compounds, including coniine and gamma-coniceine, which cause respiratory failure and death in mammals.

My good friend Brad Bonham told me about a conversation she had with a landscaper over the weekend who declared they were seeing Emerald Ash Borer (Agrilus planipennis) (EAB) beetles mating in a woodland in southwest Ohio. Of course, as she noted, it's way too early for EAB adults to be on the wing; full bloom of black locust (Robinia pseudoacacia) is a good phenological indicator for EAB adult emergence.

I've watched Cressleaf Groundsel (Packera glabella; syn. Senecio glabellus) for years popping-up in landscapes and farm fields. However, I never truly appreciated the canary yellow display provided by this winter annual. Indeed, I've placed all of my past BYGL reports on this native plant under the header, "Weed of the Week."

It's never too early for tick awareness.

Today, at the Extension Office, a tick sample was brought in for identification.  It was an adult male dog tick, Dermacentor variabilis.  Ticks are blood-feeding parasites.  Three species are medically important in Ohio as a vector of several diseases affecting humans and pets to varying degrees.  The American Dog Tick, along with the deer tick (or black-legged tick) and the lone star tick.  Tick populations have been an increasing problem in Ohio.

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Overwintered European Elm Flea Weevils (Orchestes alni) are attacking emerging elm leaves in southwest Ohio. A close examination will reveal weevils feeding and frolicking (mating) among the newly expanding leaves.

Eastern Tent Caterpillars (ETC) (Malacosoma americanum) caterpillars are accomplished and prolific tent-makers producing highly visible silk nests in the forks of branches. The nests are now large enough to be easily seen in Greater Cincinnati. However, at this point in the season, it appears that populations are highly localized and not widespread.