A local landscape pest management and tree care company will treat 23 Kwanzan cherry trees along Cherry Lane and three Mount Fuji cherry trees east of the Insurance Building on Monday, Oct. 10 to control cherry bark tortrix, an invasive insect.

The work will be done between 6 and 7:30 a.m., but is weather dependent. The spraying will not be done if it is raining or there is enough wind to cause the pesticide to drift from the treated areas.

Wolbert's Inc. of Olympia will use backpack sprayers to apply a pesticide to the base of the trees and about five feet up the trunk. There will be no spraying of the tree canopy.

The pesticide that will be used is mostly non-toxic to humans, causes nearly no allergic side effects and is not a skin or eye irritant, according to toxicologist reports and the Environmental Protection Agency.

The cherry bark tortrix is a non-native moth that damages the bark and inner layers of a tree, according to Washington State University researchers. It can kill trees or leave them susceptible to disease and other insect problems. The moth, first discovered in Washington in 1991, attacks most tree fruits, not just edible and ornamental cherries.

The goal of the spraying is to reduce the infestation on campus, not to eradicate it, which is very difficult to do.

All areas sprayed will be flagged with treatment signs, in accordance with state law.

Heritage Park hillside trail to close Oct. 11 for maintenance work

The hillside switchback trail that connects the west Capitol Campus and Heritage Park will be closed from about 7 a.m. to noon on Tuesday, Oct. 11 while Enterprise Services grounds staff cut back overgrown shrubbery and blackberries, remove “volunteer” trees and fill in ruts on the trail.

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