Anabrus simplex The Mormon cricket, Anabrus simplex, is a large insect, growing up to 8 cm in length and so-called due to the near destruction of Utah settlers’ crops in 1848. These insects are not true crickets but belong to the shieldbacked katydid family, Tettigoniidae. They live throughout the American northwest, beginning in southern Canada and ranging south…
DetailsCurrent Conditions The last couple of weeks in June were dry across the region, receiving only a fraction (0.05 inches) of the average expected rainfall for the month. Daytime high temperatures have been seasonal, night time lows are consistently below average. While the warm, dry weather is pleasant, lack of rainfall with increasing temperatures will cause…
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Lead Liability In the early days of gasoline production lead was added to gas because it was found to improve automobile performance, but as technology improved and the health hazards of lead were discovered the use of lead as an additive was phased out. Unfortunately, 50 years of car emissions containing lead has remained in the environment.…
DetailsMany jurisdictions now have ordinances the require calculation of pre- and post-development tree canopy cover and consequent mitigation requirements if certain thresholds are not reached. The Consulting Group at SavATree can create quantitative data on trees and stands on the desktop: We then visit the site in the field to add qualitative information on tree…
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Current Conditions Weather for the middle of June has actually been quite pleasant and mild, mostly dry with humidity rising and a couple of fronts coming through in the last couple of days. Most of the region is experiencing near-drought like conditions with less than an inch of accumulated rainfall, there were localized thunderstorms and showers,…
DetailsSITES v2, the most comprehensive tool for planning, designing, and building sustainable projects is now available. With focus areas related to Water, Soil + Vegetation, Materials, and Human Health, SITES v2 can help you create sustainable landscapes. You can download the SITES v2 rating system and related tools here. The Sustainable Sites Initiative™ (SITES™) program…
DetailsWe are pleased to be helping the Northern Kentucky Urban and Community Forestry Council (NKUCFC) with a tree canopy assessment for Boone, Kenton, and Campbell counties. Using National Agricultural Imagery Program remote sensing data combined with LiDAR data, we were able to create a high resolution tree canopy cover data set. By combining these data…
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Citrus Greening Citrus greening is a bacterial disease that threatens the entirety of the citrus industry in the U.S. and has already killed 90,000 trees in the state of Florida. The disease progresses rapidly and blocks the trees’ ability to translocate water and nutrients. One symptom of the progressive disease is the emergence of partially…
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Green Space and Good Health The connection between green space and community health has been discussed, researched and extensively studied for some time. The conclusion is that the amount of open, green space in the form agricultural, urban or natural green space definitely has an effect on the surrounding community. However, analysis shows that relationship varies based…
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Lawn Lessons Soil temperature can be a determining factor in the health and wellbeing of your lawn. Intense summer heat creates stressful growing conditions for your grass season mixes. Cool season grass mixes, used a lot in the north and mid-atlantic regions, experience optimal growth conditions when soil temperatures are between 60 to 75 degrees,…
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