What kind of boring grub is this?

Philtreeman#1

New member
Cut down a Fraxinus today that was dumping some sizable limbs. We found these borer holes that are in between 3/8" & 1/2" in diameter. The holes run mostly in the xylem. Here is a picture of the grub itself. IMG_20141017_142242179.webp IMG_20141017_142354896.webp IMG_20141017_1424054102.webp IMG_20141017_142242179.webp IMG_20141017_142354896.webp IMG_20141017_1424054102.webp
 
Well what you describe and the photo of the larvae certainly points to ALB, but your location does not. ALB is primarily in the northeast US, not the intermountain west. Check with your extension office, otherwise I'm at a loss. Good luck and hope it isn't ALB.
 
He was asking for it by phrasing it like that. It actually took me a second to realize he was talking about a borer.

It is pretty boring though... Without any bright color or interesting features. I will agree with carpenter worm, but next time find something less boring. ;)
 
Bored: WAKE UP AND STAND CLEAR! :lol:

Carpenterworms here have pinkish heads and chisel jaws.

That's an ugly green color. Were the grubs in living wood or dead?
I believe they were in some live branches but I am not sure.

This tree was a big mess. It had been topped two thirds the way down around twenty years ago. It had big hangers and lots of dead stuff in it. A while back when we had some wind the home owner went out in the garden to turn the water off and about that time a loud cracking noise followed by a large limb catapulting clean over the peak of the roof and sliding into the front yard where he had been seconds ago! Lucky for them there was no serious damage to the house. Also just weeks before I removed the tree a large limb fell 1 to 2 feet away from house leaving an imprint in a shrub that looked to be ten to fourteen inches in diameter. We removed the lower lateral limbs and hangers then tied the winch on and dropped the whole mess. The trunk was four foot through at the base. So my employee got an eight thousand pound log for his saw mill.

The knife definitely did some chopping, aint gonna let any of those rogues chew holes in any thing else!
 
Big messes with solid trunks can be restored with pruning, and a little patience.

I've seen adult moths lay carpenterworm eggs as they feed on alcoholic flux, one more reason to clean infections in trees.
 
Big messes with solid trunks can be restored with pruning, and a little patience.

I've seen adult moths lay carpenterworm eggs as they feed on alcoholic flux, one more reason to clean infections in trees.

We did consider pruning but it was decided that the tree was in too tough of shape. It had been topped within about seven foot of the main stem. also all of the top part of the tops Were dead. There was very little to leave behind.


I have had very good success with removing dead and heavily infected limbs and also having the trees treated on a schedule. But a tree this bad off never looks good and it would be unlikely to ever become healthy. Also the homeowner did not act interested in ongoing treatment. (Some people just ignore the trees until they become a problem. :(

Any experiences with bad looking trees that you rehabilitated? I would like to see pictures and hear of yours.

Never stop learning
 

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