The voracious Asian Longhorned Beetle is shiny black, with a bullet-shaped body ranging from 3/4 inch to 1-1/2 inches long. It is considered more destructive than the chestnut blight, Dutch elm disease, and the gypsy moth caterpillar combined.
ALB infestation begins in the upper canopy of host trees like these Norway maples in Worcester, Massachusetts. Out of sight, the infestation went undetected for 15 years.
Per USDA protocol, infested trees must be cut, chipped, and burned. In 2010 alone, 30,000 of Worcester's mature trees were clear-cut. Complete ALB eradication will take many more years.
A demonstration arboretum on this site, Green Hill Park, Worcester, will provide ongoing public education about the ALB crisis, appropriate replacement trees, and the importance of species diversity in landscape restoration.

Beyond the Beetle, a Strategy of Diversity Green Hill Park Arboretum Worcester, Massachusetts

Winner of the 2011 Founders Fund Award, "Beyond the Beetle, a Strategy of Diversity" is a response to the wholesale devastation of the tree canopy caused by the voracious Asian Longhorned Beetle (Anaplophora glabripennis). The $25,000 award will allow Worcester Garden Club to plant a demonstration arboretum in historic Green Hill Park, a 480-acre urban oasis. A variety of specimen trees that are resistant to Asian Longhorned Beetle (ALB) will be planted to demonstrate the importance of species diversity as an important strategy in surmounting environmental challenges. Informative signage will illustrate what happened when a monoculture planting is targeted by an invasive predator. The project embraces GCA's mission of horticulture, conservation, education, and civic improvement.

The beetle arrived in the United States from China in wooden shipping materials and went undetected for over 15 years. The adult beetle has no known predators or chemical control agent. ALB infestations have occurred in New Jersey, New York, Illinois and elsewhere. USDA protocol requires infested trees to be cut, chipped, and burned. In 2010, more than 30,000 mature trees were clean-cut in Worcester neighborhoods.

Evergreens are not hosts to the ALB. Deciduous trees resistant to ALB and appropriate for residential and streetscape planting include:

• Amelanchier 'Ballerina' Apple Serviceberry
• Carpinus betulus European Hornbeam
• Carya ovata Shagbark hickory
• Cornus kousa Kousa dogwood
• Cornus mas Cornelian cherry
• Crataegus var. inermis Thornless hawthorn
• Fagus sylvatica European beech
• Gleditsia triacanthus 'Skyline' Honeylocust
• Liquidambar styraciflua 'Rotundiloba' Sweetgum
• Magnolia x loebneri 'Merrill" Magnolia
• Magnolia sttellata Star magnolia
• Metasequois glyptostroboides Dawn redwood
• Nyssa sylvatica Tupelo
• Ostrya virginiana American hop hornbeam
• Oxydendrum arboreum Sorrel tree
• Prunus sargentii Sargent cherry
• Prunus 'Snow Goose' Cherry
• Pyrus calleryana Redspire' Pear
• Syringa reticulata Japanese tree lilac

Avoid planting host trees of the Asian Longhorned Beetle:

• Acer Maple
• Aseculus Buckeye, Horse Chestnut
• Albizia Mimosa
• Betula Birch
• Celtis Hackberry
• Cercidiphyllum Katsura tree
• Fraxinus Ash
• Platanus Plane, Sycamore
• Populus Poplar
• Salix Willow
• Sorbus Mountain Ash
• Ulmus Elm

Read about the History of the Founders Fund and the previous winners.