(Radio Iowa) – Emmet County — the 99th and final county in Iowa to have a confirmed case of Emerald Ash Borer — will be the site of a mid-November meeting about what’s next for ash trees in the county. Sue Boettcher of the Iowa State University Extension Office in Emmet County says residents will learn how to diagnose an affected tree. “Some ash trees will survive and some will not and this will give you an idea of what to look for, ” Boettcher says. “…What is Emerald Ash Borer? How to identify it, signs of infestation, if the tree is safe or if it’s a candidate for treatment and then we’ll give some different treatment options.”

Boettcher says they’ll also provide a list of different tree species that would be good replacements if an ash tree is failing and must be cut down. The urban forestry specialist for the Iowa Department of Natural Resources and entomologists from Iowa State University and the Iowa Department of Agriculture will be in Emmetsburg for the event. “We’ll have some great people speaking and really be able to answer some questions,” Boettcher says. The meeting is scheduled for the evening of Wednesday, November 13th at the Estherville Public Library.

Emerald Ash Borer (Iowa Dept. of Natural Resources photo)

State officials recently announced an emerald ash borer infestation had been confirmed in an ash tree about 20 miles east of Estherville — in the small town of Armstrong. According to the U-S-D-A, the insect has killed about 15 million trees in the United States.