A parasitic bug — the hemlock woolly adelgid — that kills hemlock trees has marched its way to the eastern edge of the Cohutta Wilderness Area in Murray County, Ga., and forestry experts want to help homeowners save their trees.
“The adelgid is just now coming into Murray County,” said Scott Griffin, forest health specialist with the Georgia Forestry Commission.
The tiny Asian insect has no natural predators here. The University of Tennessee at Knoxville and four other southeastern colleges have begun growing a predator beetle, but they can’t keep up with the adelgid’s march across the country.
PDF: Adelgid paper USDA
The Georgia Forestry Commission and the University of Georgia Extension Service are sponsoring an anti-adelgid meeting tonightat 7 p.m. in Chatsworth.