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- Subscribe - Contact Us - Rate Card - Place an Ad Archives Revels Classifieds Real Estate Guide Weather Subscribe Contact Us November 30, 2004 Lithia Park trees bored to death By Jennifer Squires Ashland Daily Tidings Eight Douglas fir trees along the forested median between Granite Street and Winburn Way in Lithia Park killed by infestations of the flathead borer beetle have been topped out to create "wildlife trees" or snags for birds. "Rather than drop the whole tree, we had our climbers take the tops out of them," said Don Todt, a horticulturist with the Ashland Parks and Recreation Department. "Dead trees benefit a variety of wildlife species." The flathead borers took the first of the eight trees about three years ago; the most recent tree death occurred in the spring. The borers target Douglas firs weakened by drought and work their way through the trees. To complete their life cycle, flathead borers must kill the tree. In the late 1980s and early 1990s, over 1,000 Douglas firs fell victim to the flathead borers along the slope east of Lithia Park. Years of low precipitation compounded the problems created by the granitic soils the trees grew in. Douglas fir trees at low elevations in granitic soils, such as the ones on the eastern slope, are very stressed because the soils do not retain moisture well. "Ultimately, they become weak enough that the flathead borer can bore into them," Todt said. "It's a way that Douglas firs get eliminated from stressful sites." However, Todt believes that the death of eight trees over three years to flathead borers should not be considered an epidemic. "It's basically a natural cycle," Todt said. The topped-out trees provide a natural habitat for birds, such as blackcap chickadees and woodpeckers, as well as nut-gatherers like squirrels. "When we have an option, we just take the tops out of the tree and leave them for the wildlife," Todt said. "They're important to have in an area where you have birds." The dead trees happen to stand between a new house on Granite Street and the upper duck pond in Lithia Park. Todt explained the trees were not cut to create a scenic view of the pond for residents on Granite Street. "It's just one of those things where coincidence doesn't mean correlation," Todt said. DailyTidings.com Home Page Archives | Revels | Classifieds | Real Estate Guide | Weather | Subscribe | Contact Us Copyright 2005 Ashland Daily Tidings and Ottaway Newspapers All Rights Reserved Slippers Isotoner Slippers Dsw Shoes Ceramic Piggy Banks Fanny Mae Eloans Calenders 2005 Calender 2005 Accelerate Weight Loss Programs Citibank Student Loans Acs Loan Matchmaking & Dating Scripts Adventure Travel Conference Calls - $50/Month Security Systems student loan consolidation helzberg diamonds Click Here Site Search: .:Advertisements:. RESOURCES - Mail Tribune News - ODOT Road Cams