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Article published Jun 18, 2009 Volunteers treat Maryville College's hemlock trees as Kin Takahashi Week project
By Matthew Stewart of The Daily Times Staff
If there's something strange in your hemlock trees, who you gonna call?
Maryville College officials had faced this same question until two Walland residents volunteered to be "bug busters." The duo offered their time and expertise to treat campus trees that been infested with hemlock woolly adelgids.
Hemlock woolly adelgids primarily feed on stored starches that are critical to a hemlock tree's growth and long-term survival, according to the U.S. Department of Agriculture and Forest Service. The insect's egg sacs look like little cotton balls clinging to the undersides of hemlock branches."We're really thrilled that the college has undertaken this," said Dr. Bob Merriman, who sits on Maryville College's Board of Directors.
Merriman and Dr. Taylor Weatherbee, a cardiologist at Blount Memorial Hospital, have been treating hemlock trees since 2004 in Walland's Mountain Homes community. The pair have treated more than 8,000 trees and re-treated about 300 trees, Merriman said.
Since 2004, Merriman and Weatherbee have used three methods to treat hemlocks. When the pair started, they had to drill holes six inches apart on a tree's trunk and hammer capsules of insecticide into the holes. Merriman and Weatherbee would then return the next day and remove the capsules.
The pair later injected insecticide directly into the ground. They currently dig a trench about a foot away from a tree's base and fill it with a chloronicotide to treat a woolly adelgid infestation. The pair mix 1-ounce of chemical solution per each inch of the tree's diameter, Merriman said. If the tree is more than 25 inches in diameter, the pair mixes 2-ounces of chemical per each inch of the tree's diameter.
A one-year lag time should be expected between the time chemicals are applied and the infestation declines, Merriman said. The hemlocks will need to be treated again in five years, Weatherbee said. "Unfortunately it's not a permanent solution. We're simply hoping to save most of the trees and preserve them," Merriman said.Kin Takahashi Week
"Hemlocks are a part of the appearance and ecology of the college. They not only provide important shade, but are the legacy of the college," Weatherbee said.
Merriman and Dr. Bill Seymour, Maryville College's vice president for administrative services, had discussed treating the hemlocks for the past year. The college's building and grounds committee members ultimately determined Kin Takahashi Week would be the ideal time to treat the trees, Seymour said.
In addition to treating the hemlocks, volunteers will also cut English Ivy from trees located in the College Woods. Seymour said an extension of these projects will be to identify all the trees on campus so officials can properly can take care of them.
More than 100 volunteers are working this week on 30 projects, he said. Seymour said this year's projects include hanging more hammocks, constructing a new press box at the softball field and stripping and waxing the floors in Gamble Hall. "It (Kin Takahashi Week) helps us adapt to the realities we're facing, and it's a great way to prevent deferred maintenance.
"It's a win-win situation all the way around. We get to involve alumni in a very significant way," Seymour said. During the week, he said volunteers live in residence halls and are provided meals in return for their work.
"It's a way for alumni to give back. Everyone should do it," said Dr. Ed Krebs, a 1959 graduate of Maryville College. Krebs, who currently resides in Douglasville, Ga., participated five years ago in Kin Takahashi Week and had been planning ever since to come back.
"I put it on my list to come back. I enjoyed it very much, and it's a great way to feel you belong," Krebs said. He will also be returning to his alma mater this fall for his 50th anniversary.Labor of love
Merriman, who is a retired chemical engineer and former associate director for the Oak Ridge National Laboratory, is required to have a Department of Agriculture Private Applicator License.
Merriman tries to stay up-to-date with the latest treatment methods, he said. Merriman receives e-mails, attends educational sessions, participates in hands-on training with park and forest officials and arranges for these officials to assess the Mountain Homes program.
"We've had strong support from the people who live in Mountain Homes, U.S. Forest Service and the National Park Service. Both the park and forest service have been extremely generous in looking at the trees and giving us a lot of support," he said.
"If it wasn't for him (Merriman), we probably wouldn't have started," Weatherbee said. "It's become a labor of love. Nobody can beat our office."