Help the Hemlocks: Finding Host Resistance to the H...

The Forest Restoration Alliance (FRA) is appealing to the community to help find healthy hemlock trees to include in our tree breeding program. FRA is a non-profit formed in 2007 by a group of researchers across universities, the National Arboretum, and the USDA Forest Service, led by NC State University’s Fred Hain. Our purpose is to look for solutions to our continent’s drastically declining eastern and Carolina hemlock populations.

This project is also an effort to introduce citizen-scientists to TreeSnap (https://treesnap.org), a resource for locating trees affected by specific introduced pests and diseases throughout the U.S.. Eastern hemlocks (Tsuga canadensis) and Carolina hemlocks (T. caroliniana) are under threat by the non-native, invasive hemlock woolly adelgid (HWA, Adelges tsugae) in much of their native ranges in the eastern U.S. and into Canada. FRA is searching for candidate individuals, or stands, of hemlock expressing potential tolerance or resistance to HWA with the goal of developing genetically improved hemlocks for species restoration. Our ideal candidates are trees that have been exposed to adelgid pressure, as evidenced by nearby hemlocks that have declining health or mortality, yet are significantly healthier than other hemlocks in the vicinity.

Any information concerning tree health (live crown ratio, foliage density, etc), degree of infestation (not present – severe), and condition of surrounding hemlocks would be of particular importance in focusing our research efforts. For those who are willing to download the TreeSnap app, it contains resources to lead you through the process of identification and provides fields that better outline our specific criteria. We would also invite you to learn more about FRA’s mission and staff, find relevant articles, and download our newsletter at http://threatenedforests.com. less ↑