[nkurz]

> I live in southern Vermont and have a lot of dead ash trees.

I'm also in Southern Vermont (Readsboro) and have mostly healthy ash trees. Emerald ash borer is presumed to be in the area, but no observed evidence yet right where I am. The foresters we spoke to told us that since it takes several years for trees to show symptoms, we should probably assume that our trees are already infested. We do have some trees that seem to be suffering from another ash disease which is present here: https://www.vtinvasives.org/invasive/ash-yellows.

It's probably worth noting that there are effective treatments if you have individual trees that you want to save. I've been doing a preventative treatment on the trees near with house for the last couple year with Dinotefuran (Safari). It can be applied on the bark (basal trunk spray) in late spring, after the leaves start coming out. It costs about $10 per medium sized tree per year if you do it yourself. It won't save a tree that has already been too damaged, but is believed effective if applied before major signs appear.