6,000 Elms Injected With Deadly Disease
Scientists use Dutch elm disease to restore iconic American elm trees, with the goal of eventually using them for restoration across forests, riverbanks, and yards
Scientists with the U.S. Forest Service and The Nature Conservancy Vermont have injected 6,000 young elms with Dutch elm disease spores to evaluate their resistance. The initiative is part of a broader national push to curb forest pests and diseases that jeopardize longstanding industries like logging and endanger delicate ecosystems.
The young elms were bred from a group of several dozen Northeast trees that survived Dutch elm disease, a fungus introduced to the U.S. nearly a century ago. Dutch elm disease is caused by a deadly fungus that spreads through elm roots and by a specific species of bark beetle that carry the fungus from tree to tree.
The fungus clogs the elm tree’s water-conducting system, causing the leaves to wilt and the tree to die, usually within one or two seasons. The banded elm bark beetle, which is an average of 3 mm long, is playing a significant role in spreading the disease. The beetles breed under the bark of dead or dying elm wood and emerge from a diseased tree, carrying the fungal spores with them.
The surviving saplings will go to a breeding program designed to expand the genetic diversity of disease-tolerant elms. The goal is to eventually use them for restoration across forests, riverbanks, and yards. American elms play a critical role in climate change efforts because they strongly affect the hydrology of surrounding ecosystems.
## Why it matters Dutch elm disease has killed tens of millions of elm trees over the last century, and preserving American elms is critical to climate change efforts. The initiative to protect elms forms part of a broader national push to curb forest pests and diseases that jeopardize longstanding industries like logging and endanger delicate ecosystems. With the help of this program, scientists hope to restore the iconic American elm trees and promote a healthier ecosystem.
## What happens next The newly propagated trees will be put into a seed orchard, where they will grow and produce seeds that can be used for restoration. This process is expected to take around 15 years, after which the seeds can be used to plant new, disease-tolerant elm trees across the country.
