So Depressed about Colorado

B

BarbaraAnne

Recycles dryer sheets
Joined
May 23, 2006
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144
We absolutely love Colorado. Everything about it...well except the long winters, but if we are retired we can travel in the winter to warmer places or just stay indoors and relax. (Kind of like living in Texas in the summer except in reverse). We especially love the trees and views.

We are getting ready to retire in a couple of years and Colorado has been at the top of our list. Second choice is Texas Hill Country near Austin. Anyway, we were visiting Colorado to try and narrow down the areas we were interested in last week and were absolutely shocked to find tens of thousands of acres of beautiful scenery dying. The lodge pole pines which dominate the landscape along I-70 from Denver into Summit County are red/orange and literally dying from a beetle infestation. It's the result of drought and warmer than normal winters. There is no solution and it is really tragic. Everywhere you look vast quantities of beautiful pines are dying. This is not in a small area, it's absolutely everywhere. We were truly depressed.

This really makes us reconsider our plans. Dead trees will need to be removed which will drastically change the landscape that we love. It will be expensive for homeowners and frankly the result will be rather unsightly for a long time (20+years). I'm sure homes and towns will lose much value. The infestation is moving toward Denver and will destroy the trees on the front range up through Rocky Mountain National Park, Fort Collins and Wyoming.

Very sadly...back to the drawing board....
 
REWahoo said:
Just so you're not blindsided by it, tree life in the Texas Hill Country is also under attack. The primary tree in the area is the Live Oak which is suffering from a fatal viral disease - Oak Wilt.
Click to expand...
Sheesh, just when the Gates Foundation was starting to make some headway on the Ebola and other Texas wildlife...
 
BarbaraAnne said:
The infestation is moving toward Denver and will destroy the trees on the front range up through Rocky Mountain National Park, Fort Collins and Wyoming.
Click to expand...

Yes, very sad. My understanding is that the destruction is already happening there. Estes Park was already getting hit when I was there several years ago. Interestingly, these infestations have happened before, and the trees have recovered. However, this time around seems to be different. If were looking for a place to retire, I'd definitely factor the infestation into my considerations. :)
 
FYI, the Pine Borer Bettle has a two year life-cycle. The moth form of the beetle lays eggs just under the bark. When the eggs hatch into larva they bore under the bark where they criss-cross under the bark layer over a year eating the tender layers under the bark. They then pupate and hatch into moths to mate and lay eggs in neighboring trees.

The only effective means of killing them is a combination of root/bark chemical transport and leaf/bark treatment through spraying. Both methods are expensive. We had several spruce trees infected at my previous cabin and tried to say the few trees that were not yet heavily infected. We saved several but last just as many. Most were very large and dominated the view. It was a crying shame to see them cut down and hauled off for burning to help prevent the spread.

The Northwest is also showing signs of the beetle. Some trees in the National Forests are starting to show signs of the infection (browning of the needles at the higher and outer parts of the tree). As you said...it is a terrible thing. The economic loss to the timber industry will be staggering. The losses to other species will be huge as fires and mud slides change the landscape. I can't imagine the ultimate cost.

Don't carry firewood from area to area. This can spread the beetle to virgin areas. Buy local firewood.
 
Thanks REWahoo for the heads up on the live oaks.

Yikes, we have a large beautiful 40 ft. live oak in front of our house. It's our only large tree here on the Dallas prairie. I'll have to keep a careful eye on it till we sell our home. It's a major selling feature.
 
BarbaraAnne said:
We absolutely love Colorado. Everything about it...well except the long winters, but if we are retired we can travel in the winter to warmer places or just stay indoors and relax. (Kind of like living in Texas in the summer except in reverse). We especially love the trees and views.

We are getting ready to retire in a couple of years and Colorado has been at the top of our list. Second choice is Texas Hill Country near Austin. Anyway, we were visiting Colorado to try and narrow down the areas we were interested in last week and were absolutely shocked to find tens of thousands of acres of beautiful scenery dying. The lodge pole pines which dominate the landscape along I-70 from Denver into Summit County are red/orange and literally dying from a beetle infestation. It's the result of drought and warmer than normal winters. There is no solution and it is really tragic. Everywhere you look vast quantities of beautiful pines are dying. This is not in a small area, it's absolutely everywhere. We were truly depressed.

This really makes us reconsider our plans. Dead trees will need to be removed which will drastically change the landscape that we love. It will be expensive for homeowners and frankly the result will be rather unsightly for a long time (20+years). I'm sure homes and towns will lose much value. The infestation is moving toward Denver and will destroy the trees on the front range up through Rocky Mountain National Park, Fort Collins and Wyoming.

Very sadly...back to the drawing board....
Click to expand...


Do not come to Colorado -- stay in Texas. There is the pine bark beetle infestation, dizziness at high altitude, too many craft breweries & the state is moving from red to blue.
 
I grew up in a midwestern town known for it's beautiful mature trees. Dutch Elm disease wiped out nearly all the trees in my neighborhood. As a kid it was fun to watch it unfold... every few weeks the city arborists would come in and take down a new tree, providing hours of entertainment. These were big mature trees with trunks at least several feet in diameter. They would dig out the roots down to a foot or so below the ground, which created a little hole in the grass for us kids to play in like sandboxes. The replacement trees tended to be just the right size for tree climbing. Now when I go back to visit I see that all the trees are mature and beautiful.

It is sad, but life goes on.
 
free4now said:
I grew up in a midwestern town known for it's beautiful mature trees. Dutch Elm disease wiped out nearly all the trees in my neighborhood. As a kid it was fun to watch it unfold... every few weeks the city arborists would come in and take down a new tree, providing hours of entertainment. These were big mature trees with trunks at least several feet in diameter. They would dig out the roots down to a foot or so below the ground, which created a little hole in the grass for us kids to play in like sandboxes. The replacement trees tended to be just the right size for tree climbing. Now when I go back to visit I see that all the trees are mature and beautiful.

It is sad, but life goes on.
Click to expand...

Chestnuts
Elm
Ash
...
 
The pine beetles went through this area in East TN, about 10 years ago, I believe.
We have owned property here for six years. In this area they seemed to kill every tree in some areas, but then in the same neighborhood, nearby, no effect. It was pretty ugly for 3-5 years, but now you really have to look for the evidence. I believe we have a more varied flora here than in Colorado, so something else fills the gaps in a hurry. It is my understanding that this is a repeating cycle--like every 30 years or so.
 
Well don't think about coming east................... 200-300 year old Hemlocks have been dying throughout Pennsylvania, Virginia and I'm not sure where else thanks to the imported Wooly Adelgid. I'd guess that 75% of the Hemlocks are dead or dying in the Wissahickon area of Philadelphia. There are some younger trees but you just have the feeling that they'll never survive.

It's very sad to see but you can only hope that new, long-lived trees, come up in their place. Nature does have a way of wanting to survive. Just ask the weeds in our garden.................
 
Yes, it's best to stay away from Colorado. Who knows if this beetle disease is contagious to humans? :eek: Also, stay away from Boulder in particular because the Walnut trees all have "thousand canker disease" and you must know that canker sores are really awful! Anyway, 400 walnut trees must be removed by Sept 15 this year when Boulder will be totally nude of beautiful trees.

So inevitably Colorado will be really ugly, probably by the end of the year, totally barren of all tree life. Stay away. Stay far away!!!!
 
Gee, that's too bad about Boulder, Oldbabe. We spent a lovely day there and have always enjoyed it...

Especially the friendly, welcoming residents...;)
 
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