Termites in Collected Junipers

[michaelj]

I collected several old junipers with deadwood that I just found termite damage in. I don't see any termites, but I am not sure whether they are still present, active and causing more damage.

What are others' experiences finding and rooting out termites? I've read a bit of conflicting information elsewhere.

 

[sorce]

Heard tell of tents and bombs.

Sorce

 

[Bonsai Nut]

I've had termites in juniper deadwood. I used insect spray (Raid) that I squirted into the exit hole. There really wasn't any place for them to hide

 

[ColinFraser]

Hey @michaelj - how's things?
When we were at GSBF, I remember several of the pros reiterating that collected CA junipers should be completely stripped of dead bark, punky wood, etc. before any other work begins on them, specifically in order to identify and expose pests and pest damage. I don't recall a termite specific remedy though. I do know that some of the gasses used when houses are tented for termites will kill plants, so keep an eye out for that.

 

[Cypress187]

I have absolutely no knowledge of junipers nor termites.

 

[Vin]

With the exception of Formosan subterranean termites, termites require moisture to survive and are generally not known to eat live wood unless it's diseased or dying. They live in colonies in the ground and search for food (cellulose) by following the moisture. In your case they must be living in the pot. Any insecticide that lists termites should work fine to kill them off.

 

[jkl2]

I have absolutely no knowledge of junipers nor termites.

Then why the response?

 

[Jarath]

Call the Orkin man or I can get my fat squirrel to eat them 4 ya

 

[michaelj]

They live in colonies in the ground and search for food (cellulose) by following the moisture. In your case they must be living in the pot. Any insecticide that lists termites should work fine to kill them off.

They aren't living in the pot. If they only live in the soil, then I have no termites, just pre-existing termite damage. I just want to make sure I don't have any little colonies living inside the wood. I've torn away the termite-damaged deadwood, but there are still holes going into the trunk and even the large roots. I have seen articles online that talk about drywood termites that nest inside the wood, and I was concerned that I might have some of those still on the tree where I can't see them.

 

[thomas22]

I have many termite damaged trees. They live in your trees for years and cause a lot of damage before you even realize they existed. I will give you more info tonight when I have more time. Probably not a coincidence we both live in the OC.

 

[Vin]

I have seen articles online that talk about drywood termites that nest inside the wood, and I was concerned that I might have some of those still on the tree where I can't see them.

Those are the Formosan subterranean termites that I mentioned. They must be more common in California than in Florida. I have dealt with termites for over 20 years. I make no claim about being an expert but I do have some knowledge of them.

EDIT: Apparently they are more common in Florida than California. http://entnemdept.ufl.edu/creatures/urban/termites/formosan_termite.htm

That's me in green

 

[Vin]

I have many termite damaged trees. They live in your trees for years and cause a lot of damage before you even realize they existed. I will give you more info tonight when I have more time. Probably not a coincidence we both live in the OC.

Interesting distribution map. http://entnemdept.ufl.edu/creatures/urban/termites/formosan_termite.htm There is only one County in Cali that has Formosans. But, the map is 10 years old so I'm sure there's more now.

 

[bonsaibp]

I use a syringe and inject malathion into any holes esp. if I see sawdust. A good systemic will help get them if they're going into live wood. On junipers I use Bayer Annual Tree and Shrub care. They can be a pain but they also create some cool features at times.

 

[Bonsai Nut]

We have both subterranean and dry wood termites in the OC. I have had both in my house. The subterranean ones are the incredibly nasty ones that can cause structural damage in as little as a year; however according to our termite people they need moist soil to live and have to build mud tubes into your house so they are relatively easy to spot. These are also the ones that swarm in the first warm weather of the spring and you can often find out you have them when suddenly a bunch of what looks like winged ants shows up in your house or by a window.

The dry wood ones can live for years in dry wood. I have no idea how they get water. I have a house with exposed wood beams that project outside the roof line and when we moved in literally every beam had termites. You can spot treat them, or you can treat the beams with penetrating epoxy and you will kill them in situ because they can't chew through the epoxy. These are the ones that my termite people say exist in every almost every home in the OC. They will eventually do structural damage but it takes years and years.

I had dry wood termites in one of my California junipers. It was an active nest - I could tell because of the fresh "sawdust" that they dump out of the hole. In my house, the termite guys locate the exit hole, and then drill small holes into the wood and inject a penetrating pesticide in a circle around the hole. It is quite effective. In my case I took a narrow straw (normally used for squirting silicon oil) and squirted RAID into the hole. No problems since. Granted the tree was only about 2' tall, so there wasn't tons of deadwood.

 

[michaelj]

These are trees that were just collected (not even potted up yet), so if they don't live in the wood, I'm fine. The root ball has no nest in it, and I'm not seeing any live "white ants" crawling about. I think I'll squirt some malathion in the exposed holes after I get them in the pots.

 

[Bonsai Nut]

These are trees that were just collected (not even potted up yet), so if they don't live in the wood, I'm fine. The root ball has no nest in it, and I'm not seeing any live "white ants" crawling about. I think I'll squirt some malathion in the exposed holes after I get them in the pots.

You won't see them - they never come out. What you will see is the "sawdust" that they will dump out of the exit hole. Fresh dust = live nest. Note that they can excavate quite a cavity behind the surface of the wood and you will never see anything other than a tiny exit hole.

 

[michaelj]

Hard to tell how fresh this dust is. I guess I'll hose out as much as I can, then spray, and if I see anything new, I'll know I have trouble.

 

[Tieball]

I don't have termites in my trees or house. However, I use a Termidor around my home foundation. I buy it from DoMyOwnPestControl.com. A weaker average Termidor solution is also very good at eliminating unwanted ants. The solution is not, and intentionally meant not to be, an instant knock down kill for insects. The termites and ants just walk right through the spray on the ground. They don't even know the spray is there. But, they track it back to the nest where it kills off the entire colony. I had a terrible red ant problems years ago. Everywhere. The ants even had well worn pathways....I think my yard was the expressway. I sprayed the ant paths. Next day there was not an ant around. And the ants have never returned.

 

[sorce]

Hard to tell how fresh this dust is. I guess I'll hose out as much as I can, then spray, and if I see anything new, I'll know I have trouble.

Peek a boo!

No more hidey hidey!

Sorce

 

[Bonsai Nut]

Those tunnels are old. What you are seeing is an old part of the deadwood that they ate years ago, and then at some point the bark or outer deadwood got pulled away to reveal their inner tunnels. If you have live ones, they'll be INSIDE the wood. Look for a hole, and then dust that looks like small round brown pellets (it is actually termite waste, but we don't need to go there).