The Town of Okotoks will be busy with tree replacement along Elizabeth street this spring.

Gordon White, Town of Okotoks Urban Forest Specialist, says about 35 Fall Gold Black Ash trees that formerly lined Elizabeth Street needed to be removed and replaced due to infestation by  cottony psyllid.

He says about 10 additional ash trees will be removed and replaced as they decline beyond a healthy state.

"(Cottony psyllid) is a type of plant lice which attacks the leave very early in the spring, just as they're emerging," White explains. "And as a result, don't allow the tree to leaf out very well. Over repeated years of that, the tree starts to decline and that was the situation with these trees."

White says they're relying on diversity, rather than pesticides, to maintain the health of the downtown trees. He says the new trees were chosen for interest's sake but also because of their suitability to the downtown environment, including considerations of height and size to allow for the movement of pedestrian and vehicle traffic.

"Right now, we're looking at Prairie Horizon Alder, Northern Pin Oak, Linden and Hackberry and we're considering another species down there, either Red Oak or a Northern Acclaim Honey locust," he says.

The Elizabeth Street tree replacement will cost about $32,000.00 and was an approved capital project in the town's 2018 budget.

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