The City of Sioux Falls is dealing with the emerald ash borer,
found in parts of the city in 2018.
As
a result, there is an emergency quarantine for Minnehaha and parts of Lincoln
and Turner Counties, where wood cannot be moved. This quarantine is to prevent
spreading the Emerald Ash Borer.
Emerald
Ash Borers have killed more than 100 million ash trees in the U.S. over the
last two decades. The City of Sioux Falls has approximately 84,900 ash trees.
It
takes awhile for infestation of Emerald Ash Borer to migrate, so the city and
state wants to let homeowners know now, so they can take action and slow the
spread.
Due to the excessive snow and cold temperatures, many of our beautiful shrubs are not looking their best and little rabbits are to blame. Rabbit damage is now showing up in the country or in town.
Rabbit damage has been especially dramatic this winter
because of the snow cover. Rabbits naturally have vegetation that they can feed
on in the early spring, but this season they had no other option than to eat
whatever they could to survive. Even plants that are not typically eaten by
rabbits have damage. Most damage has occurred on Hawthorns, Crabapples, Burning
Bush and Cotoneasters.
Because of the snow fall, the rabbits were able to get to
higher areas on plant stems and trunks than they typically can reach. Winter
rabbit damage can usually be identified in a few different ways. A few sure
tell sign to know if a rabbit is to blame is to take a look base of your
plants. Sometimes it’s difficult to tell, especially when they have been eaten
completely to the ground. It will look as if they the plant were neatly pruned
at a 45-degree angle just above the height of the snow.
Rabbits typically eat only what they can easily reach, so
most damage occurs on the first 1-2 ft depending on the amount of snowfall in
your area (the more snow, the higher up the rabbit damage). If the rabbit left
the branches, bark is typically stripped away from the stems and trunk of the
plant.
It is not too late to take preventative measures. For
backyard bunny issues, exclusion is probably the best method for the winter
remaining. Fencing around susceptible trees and shrubs is advised, but
certainly not easy to do right now due to snow. Any screening or fencing needs
to be pushed down to at least ground level, which will be difficult in 2 feet
of snow. I like the plastic tree collars applied around the trunk of smaller
trees which are more susceptible like apple and pear.
Scare tactics don’t always work well for rabbits. A dog
might help while it is outside, but family pets should not be left out during
the cold and especially not at night, which is when rabbits are most active.
I used taste repellents, however, they always need to be
reapplied.
Farming has come a long way since the days of horse and plow. Every year, there are new and exciting developments being made which could further change the way we farm. Now drones are used in farming and ranching.
1. Cyber grazing and electronic fencing
Fencing may be one of the oldest management tools for controlling livestock movement and access to pasture, but it seems it could have finally had its day. Today there are virtual fencing prototypes have relied on GPS technology which keep animals in a defined area thanks to an animal-mounted device which delivers a shock or noise like a dog collar to keep livestock away from an area. Then mark the controlled area for the cattle to recognize colored flags or light indication when to or not move to another pasture.
2. Farming from the skies with drones
Drones are used to monitor grass use or to identify crop growth. Also, to identify weeds and diseases growing in those crops. 3. Farmers are now using spray drones to spot spray in their crops or pasture.
