Get ready for a great summer!

Are you excited for this summer? Here at Don’t Move Firewood, we’re looking forward to it for sure. Here’s our quick guide to our available summer resources for outreach professionals, parents, kids and anyone looking for more information:

 

Summer Special Events that are great for firewood outreach:

 

To prepare for these events, we suggest visiting the following excellent sources for free downloads on the topics of firewood, emerald ash borer, spongy moth, and Asian longhorned beetle:

 

Do you have an event or resource page that should be listed here? Email us at info@dontmovefirewood.org to suggest an addition to either list, and we’ll update this post as needed!

Take This One Step to Protect Trees on Memorial Day

Are you planning to start your camping season off right this Memorial Day weekend?

This blog first ran on 5/20/2015 at Conservancy Talk, a blog by The Nature Conservancy

Here’s one simple way to combine your desire to protect the environment with your plans to have a great time outdoors: don’t move firewood from your home or backyard to your campsite.

Firewood can contain hitchhiking forest pests — often invisible to the naked eye in the form of tiny insect eggs or larvae hidden deep inside the wood — and these tiny organisms can be enough to destroy whole ecosystems.

Now more than ever, all outdoor enthusiasts need to know that they should be getting their firewood by one of the following ways: buying it at or near their campsite, gathering it on site when permitted, or buying certified heat treated firewood with a either a state seal or a USDA APHIS seal of compliance.

These three options all work to prevent the movement of invasive forest pests.

It is up to you to figure out which source of firewood works best for your camping trip. Just remember the simple rule: don’t move firewood. Bringing firewood from your home isn’t safe for the forest, and in fact it is often against state or federal regulations.

By buying it where you’ll burn it, you are helping prevent the movement of damaging forest pests like the emerald ash borer, Asian longhorned beetle, spongy moth, and others.

These pests don’t move far on their own, but when unsuspecting campers move contaminated firewood, they can start new infestations, spreading the problem farther and wider.

 

These small D-shaped holes are a sign that an ash tree is infested with the emerald ash borer. Photo © Dan Herms, Ohio State University, ForestryImages.org

Forest pests can be devastating to not just the trees they infest, but to entire ecosystems. You might not realize it, but millions of trees have been lost, and whole species of trees have been driven to the brink of extinction — all because of forest pests.

Starting with the accidental introductions of forest pests like white pine blister rust and European spongy moth in the late 1800s and continuing to recent discoveries of Asian longhorned beetle and emerald ash borer over 100 years later, forests pests are not a new problem.

Fortunately, forest managers and scientists all over North America are continuously working to slow the spread of invasives, contain the infestations that can be eradicated, and educate the public on how they can help.

And indeed, the silver lining to this story is this: you can help. You can tell everyone — your friends, your family, your neighbors — don’t move firewood. Instead buy or gather it on site, or buy certified heat treated wood before you go.

If you aren’t sure if there will be firewood for sale at your campsite, take a minute to call ahead to find out if you can simply collect it on site.

By doing the right thing and educating others, you become part of the solution. You can rest easy this Memorial Day weekend knowing that the source of your campfire is good for the forest!

Attract more attention with Forest Pest Fly Tying

Guest blog authored by Bob Wiltshire, Executive Director, Invasive Species Action Network

Are you looking for a great way to stimulate discussion about forest pests? The Forest Pest Fly Tying Project may be the program you need! If you’re not familiar with fly tying you probably don’t realize the amazing things a talented fly tier can do with a hook, some thread and a bit of feather and foam. The fly tiers in this program tie Asian longhorned beetle flies that are amazingly realistic – enough so you and your staff can use them to teach the public how to identify ALB.

While the fly tiers are not experts on the insects themselves, they can make a huge difference in attracting quality attention to your outreach booth. Forest pest experts across the country have found that adding a fly tier to a booth at a garden or sporting show, county fair or other event results in more people joining the discussion about forest pests and the Don’t Move Firewood campaign.

Right now the program is working with Arbor Day events. Depending on the dates and region, we may be able to supply a fly tier in your area for your upcoming summer or fall events. For more information visit: the Forest Pest Fly Tying Project or contact Bob Wiltshire at bob@stopans.org.