i live two miles from underwoods

ken

I wondered about that when I read they are in Adrian.

Thousands of reports from the east coat to Iowa. This could be a expensive problem for DuPont as well as for the tree owners.

I learned about this issue several days ago. My care taker who sprays my conifers yearly for insects informed me this was going to be a massive kill off of many conifers where this stuff was applied on turf. He said large conifers in many neighborhoods are now beginning to die in the KC area. It has been kept under wrap with the intention of keeping it out of the press. It looks like they didn't succeed.

Hire a professional if you need to spray. A person qualified in plant health care. Never buy products yourself to spray your yard until you talk with a person that is qualified to give sound advice. Example: Your county extension agent. Just a phone call away.

Dave

Why can people not spray against weeds themselves? Only commercial applications had problems here. And why having dandelions at all when you spray regularly anyone popping up? Perhaps at $1,000. per gallon that stuff got mixed the wrong way?
I wonder if Dupont also missed testing for damage to humans...

We are investigating a similar problem here in Florida on live oaks. Another herbicide, metsulfuron methyl, is being used to kill weeds in St. Augustine grass. Live oaks in the vicinity are dead in a couple of weeks.

At 1,100$ per gallon, I can't imagine other herbicides being mixed with it. Fungicides in special situations, sure.

Ugly!

Dax

Clover fixes nitrogen. I believe dandelions do too. These lazy people deserve to have dead trees. When you rely on a herbicide to do your gardening you fail.

Go on TV flattie, and tell 'em to start a dandelion protection society (DPS).Let us know how it goes (if you survive to tell the story!) T.

On my drive to work, I pass an all beige subdivision, where the lawn sprinklers go off every other morning regardless of the weather. All the houses backing up to the main street have spruces lining the backyards. At least 5 of the properties are going to lose all of them. I was wondering what was going on.

Good post.

A shame this happened.

I am reminded of the way i avoid brand new medicines or vaccines as soon as they come out unless absolutely necessary.

the ONE TREE i have damaged.. a generic in a wind screen looks like the 4th pic at the link ...

the guy is coming out w/in a few weeks to look at it ...

ken

Here is a link that might be useful: link

Trees dying all over KC. Most people oblivious to the problem and think it is due to our heat. All my neighbors who have problems used one BIG NAME lawn company very well known here in KC.

Curious, what is known about the older lawn anti-weed chemicals, concerning trees? Any effect?

Locally - observed while driving around this evening - mostly Austrian Pines are dying off here. About all recently built apartment/condo communities or recent housing projects with green buffer spaces which rely of commercial lawn care are experiencing about 100% kill of the Austrians.
Marshall

Noki:

I have suspected lawn weed control chemicals for the death of Norway spruce for a long time. I have never identified exactly which chemical, but I could cite a dozen or more cases where I have seen lawns much improved, weeds eliminated, and then Norway spruce trees dead. I won't use anything within 100 feet of any of my trees.

--spruce

Herbicides containing 2,4-Dichlorophenoxyacetic acid / 2,4-D (eg, "Weed and Feed") can damage and even kill conifers, particularly if applied directly to the foliage. If applied according to the labeled directions, however, problems should be rare.

Mrgpad: What you are describing sounds like Pine Tip Blight, a fungal disease that has nothing whatsoever to do with herbicides. Conditions which stress trees, such as prolonged heat and drought, do indeed make susceptible species more prone to infection.

Here is a link that might be useful: Pine tip blight

wassercon - I had thought about that after posting what I did -- but figured the damage may be caused by Diplodia pinea. We experienced some severe hail damage in the area back in May - up to baseball size hailstones - and from what I've read damage to the wood encourages Diplodia infections. But it could be as you say as well.
Marshall

Here's a news story from AP. I don't know if this refers to the same weed-killer under discussion here:

By Val Brickates Kennedy DD

(MarketWatch) -- E.I. DuPont de Nemours & DD -3.72% is considering recalling and discontinuing the sale of its popular weed-killer Imprelis due to complaints that it can kill trees, according to the Environmental Protection Agency's website on Thursday. In a letter to DuPont dated Aug. 3, the agency acknowledged that DuPont was considering removing the product from the market. The letter also informed DuPont that the EPA was concerned that the company has claimed that certain toxicity studies for Imprelis should not be made public because they are "confidential business information." The EPA said it believes it is in the public interest that the information be released. In a second letter, also dated Aug. 3, the agency informed DuPont it also believes Imprelis' labeling is inadequate in advising of the product's potential risk to large plants such as trees

I'm inclined to think that something other than 'natural' causes is afoot here, especially given the vast geographical range that these problems have been seen occurring.

The ramped up pressure from the EPA, and the general public also now seems to be having an affect on DuPont, as they now taken the measure of setting up a website specifically for dealing with Imprelis and its alleged problems. Also, lawsuits have now begun to be filed against DuPont.

4 Lawsuits Filed Over Alleged Damaged Trees From Herbicide

Here is a link that might be useful: DuPont website dealing specifically with Imprelis issues

Sounds like this product is on its way out. Whoever tested this product needs to find a new job.

This is good:

"Homeowners and golf-course operators claim the chemical has its sights set on large spruce and pine trees, and at least four lawsuits are seeking damages from DuPont. The company admits that Imprelis even damaged trees on its own property, including at the Stine-Haskell Research Center near Newark, where the product was discovered."

http://www.delawareonline.com/article/20110805/BUSINESS/108050338/DuPont-stop-selling-new-herbicide?odyssey=tab:topnews:text:Home

This came up at a conference yesterday. I did not realize the magnitude of the problem. Seems to be causing the greatest damage on large wh. pines and N. spruce. An unmitigated disaster for lovers of precisely those trees, such as I.

Comments were made re: New York state's stringent pesticide regulations. Many lawn care operators complaints dealing with how "They won't let us do anything" type of statements were contrasted against that state's not having any damager from this product. Maybe, just maybe, these regulations have value!

+oM

@Wisconsintom:

Maybe not.

The New York laws have banned safe and effective insectisides and herbicides that have been on the market for 50 years. Now, New Yorkers are shocked -- shocked! -- to find that their most expensive 5 star hotels are infested with bed bugs, a bug that was eradicated from most parts of the country in the 1940s.

Science, not emotion, should be used to dermimine what is in the public interest.

BTW: I find it fascinating how every time I click on this link, I am bombarded with Google Ads from trial lawyers suing DuPont.

Right back at ya, Wasser. Bedbugs are making a comeback everywhere, including places you'd not expect. Also, not too well concealed in your post is the inference that my points are based in emotion rather than evidence. I guess you must be excused for not knowing me, but nothing could be further from the truth. I use and have used pest control products for 30 + years. I think I know just a little bit about this area. My point, which BTW, cannot be refuted, is that it was precisely New York's regs that prevented this large-scale event from happening there.

+oM

My apologies, Wisconsintom. That came out much harsher than I intended, and I was thinking of legislators in New York, not you.

I lived in California for 15 years (left in 2004) and became hypersensitized to bans of all sorts.

Hi wasser,

If you want an internet with no ads at all and I mean none, there's a free download available from (browser Firefox). I haven't seen an ad on the internet for years. I'll link you below, if you're interested, or anyone else for that matter.

Dax

Here is a link that might be useful: Adblock Plus

Hehe, Wass, what I didn't say above is that I too decry blanket bans of ALL pest control products! The truth is that there are a number of perfectly safe materials, without which, much of the good things we do would be impossible. Something like the preponderance of mulched beds-a good thing-would be pretty much undoable if we didn't have stuff like glyphosate to kill off the breakthroughs. There's others.

It's all good..........+oM