Published: September 09, 2007 12:42 am         

Gypsy moth hordes coming to county

CUMBERLAND — Bernie Zlomek and other members of the Allegany County Forestry Board are the kinds of folks who actually can see the forest for the trees and right now they don’t like the vision.

“We think the gypsy moth population is going to explode in Allegany County next year,” said Zlomek, who makes his living as a forester with the Maryland Department of Natural Resources.

Around the table, heads nod. Those heads are attached to people such as Sally Cannon, an entomologist, and Susan Ford, an inspector, for the Maryland Department of Agriculture, and to others such as Don Malaney, Brad Metzger and Ken Roberts, members of the forestry board, and to Derrick Bender, University of Maryland extension agent.

On the table are maps of the county. The areas shaded in yellow show known areas of infestation, the woodlands where egg masses appear like polka dots on the bark of oak trees and where, come spring, these voracious insects will hatch, grow and defoliate.

“What makes it bad is that one infested area can merge with another and then that area enlarges,” said Roberts. The result of such population growth is dead trees. The result of dead trees is loss of lumber income, changes to wildlife habitat and an elevated danger of forest fires.

On Sept. 29, Bender will coordinate a free Gypsy Moth Workshop at which interested citizens can find out how to identify if they have a problem on their woodlands and to find out about available help. The workshop takes place from 1 to 3 p.m. at the Town Hill Bed and Breakfast on U.S. Route 40. Register by calling Bender at (301) 724-3320 no later than Sept. 27.

“If you have 250 egg masses per acre or if you have seven egg masses on any one tree you have a gypsy moth problem,” said Ford, speaking of the quarter-sized, light brown patches, each holding thousands of eggs.

Right now, the forestry board is looking for funding from federal, state and county levels to initiate inspections of woodlots in residential settings.

“The worst situations will get sprayed first,” Roberts said.

Ford said that in a recent year, money existed to spray residential woodlands infested down to the level of 1,000 egg masses per acre. Owners of less infested, but still problematical woods, had to cough up the money for private spraying.

A cool and wet spring brings with it a fungus that attacks and kills egg masses, but such springs are not common on the eastern and drier side of Allegany County where the Green Ridge State Forest dominates the landscape, the foresters said.

Ford said that 6,500 acres of the county are known to be infested, a substantial portion of the 200,000 or so acres of woodlands available between Big Savage Mountain and Sideling Hill Creek.

“It is important for landowners to start checking their trees now, so that they can be considered for help when it comes available,” Zlomek said.

Michael A. Sawyers can be reached at msawyers@times-news.com.