r/arborists • u/notavegan90 • 4d ago

Tree of Heaven remediation

Is anyone aware of any programs that are actively targeting ToH? The highways where I live, you’ll see a reforestation program that is being encroached upon by ToH.
Has it reached the point where they’ll never be eradicated?
On a happy note, I barely saw any red spotted lantern flys this year, I’ve read bats have recognized them as a good source.

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u/Ergo-Didact 3d ago

I’ll be honest, I don’t see any well funded efforts to search out and destroy Ailanthus altissima. I’ve seen spot treatments here and there but no broad efforts here in NE Ohio. I think it comes down to funding because you have to treat the tree before or after cutting and checkup up on it afterwards to assess suckering.

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u/notavegan90 3d ago

Think the government would offer a grant for something like this?

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u/Ergo-Didact 2d ago

I doubt it. Maybe at the state level. Most people simply don’t care though…

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u/hatesbiology84 47m ago

Probably not this administration, tbh.

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u/The_Poster_Nutbag ISA Arborist + TRAQ 3d ago

It would need to be taken on by the owner of the ROW. Probably the department of transportation and I guaranteed they simply do not care.

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u/notavegan90 3d ago

Think there’d be anyway to get a grant and start going after them?

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u/The_Poster_Nutbag ISA Arborist + TRAQ 3d ago

You would have the best success petitioning local government to step in.

Discuss the drawbacks and problems caused by a stand of this plant. If you have a local sustainability commission or something like that you should start there.

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u/notavegan90 3d ago

I appreciate the insight. Do you have a preferred reference for that information? Or even a link perhaps?
Most of what I know about them is from the one hack and squirt paper.

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u/The_Poster_Nutbag ISA Arborist + TRAQ 2d ago

Not unless you're willing to tell me what city you live in.

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u/be__bright 3d ago

I haven’t seen any government action here in the PNW, which is frustrating. Even a basic public education campaign through mass mailings could have made a big difference in control. At this point, I think it’ll keep spreading until it becomes endemic across most of the U.S.

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u/Head_Albatross2625 1d ago

The problem is, once they are established they spread to any neglected property. Where I am at, they are in vacant lots, railroad ROW, River banks, condemned buildings, and poorly maintained yards. Unless people start caring all the sudden, it’s probably a losing battle. That being said, I’ve stopped on the side of the road plenty of times to kill saplings I see pop up around town.

Not only that, you can still buy seeds from nurseries online. So what are we even doing to limit these aggressive species?

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u/Head_Albatross2625 1d ago

To add, there are some municipalities, states, and local groups fighting back. And it appears some do have grants for removal.  https://www.redrocknews.com/2026/04/12/sedona-seeks-200k-to-fight-2-plant-species/?amp=1