Disaster Warning
In the Rocky Mountains we are experiencing a disaster. The pine beetles are attacking not just a few of the pine trees, but three million acres of pine forest have already been destroyed. The black rice-sized insects burrow into the lodgepole pine bark and chew on the wood and get the sugar to help them sustain life during the harsh winter. Trees that are most susceptible to the damage are the older trees, in crowded areas that have poor growing conditions. Also vulnerable are injured trees or ones under stress with too little sap to expel the insects. Young trees are not likely to become destroyed because the diameter of the trees and the general health of the vegetation. The first evidence of attack is shown by sap that is flowing from holes bored in the tree and you might also notice powder at the base of the tree, especially in late summer when the adult insects leave the damaged trees to find new healthy ones to attack. It takes just 2 weeks after the initial migratio...