Sap-sucking Bugs Make a Mess of Indiana's State Tree

Tuliptree with scale and
sooty mold (Purdue PPDL)

Across Indiana this week, homeowners with tulip poplar trees could be finding their cars and landscape plants covered in a mysterious sticky film. This time of year tulip poplars are easily recognized by leaves whose shape resembles a tulip and the two inch long lime green and orange flowers in the tree canopy.

The culprit in this sticky mess could be the tulip tree scale insect, a small sap-sucking bug that feeds on the trees’ branches. Declared as the state tree of Indiana in 1931, tulip poplars are well-regarded and widely planted for their beautiful flowers and form, shade, and rapid growth. The tree’s sap carries vital nutrients, and feeding by the insect can cause damage to the trees in addition to the unsightly mess.  <Read More>

June Home, Yard, and Garden Calendar

HOME (Indoor plants and activities)

Indoor plants will require more frequent watering and fertilization as they increase their summer growth.

Houseplants can be moved outdoors to a shady location, but pay close attention to their watering needs.

YARD (Lawns, woody ornamentals and fruits)

Prune spring-flowering shrubs after blooms fade.

Apply fungicide to prevent and control black spot on roses.


GARDEN (Vegetables, small fruits and flowers)

Discontinue harvest of asparagus and rhubarb around mid-June to allow foliage to develop and store food reserves for next year’s harvest. Fertilize and water when dry to promote healthy growth.

Mulch to control weeds and conserve soil moisture after soil has warmed. Many materials such as straw, chopped corncobs, bark chips, shredded paper and grass clippings can be used.  <Read More>

Weekly Outlook - Pork Producers Ask, What Happened?

There is an old saying that, “Life is what actually happens when you’re planning on something else!” That adage is playing out for pork producers this spring. The spring hog price rally has not occurred and feed costs have now pushed to record high levels. This combination is resulting in a disappointing period of financial losses this spring and summer that was not anticipated earlier this year.

Hog prices normally shoot up in the spring. In fact, in the past 5 years, live hog prices rose by an average of about $11 per hundredweight from early April to mid-May. This year, prices struggled to hold on to their early April levels in the low $60s. The reasons for the lack of a spring rally are not totally clear. Perhaps there was too much anticipation of high spring and summer hog prices earlier in the year. June lean hog futures, for example, reached levels equivalent to about $76 per live hundredweight in late February. This was just before the “lean finely textured beef” issue hit the media waves that sent livestock futures prices down. The lowest cattle futures prices came on more bad news announcing a fourth BSE cow on April 24. Lean hog futures then bottomed about 10 days later.  <Read More>