If you have an ash tree in the Omaha metro right now, you're in one of three groups: it's already infested, it's about to be, or it's already on a treatment program. There is no longer a 'safe' fourth option. The emerald ash borer is here and it's not leaving.
How we got here
EAB was first confirmed in Douglas County in 2016. By 2020 it had spread across Sarpy, Cass, and Pottawattamie counties. Omaha's parks department estimated in 2023 that the metro had lost 40,000+ ash trees to EAB, with tens of thousands more standing dead or in decline.
If you planted an ash for street tree value 20 years ago, you're not alone. We pull half a dozen of them out every week.
How to identify an infestation
EAB symptoms appear after the tree has been infested for a year or two. By the time you can see them, the damage is significant. Look for:
- Canopy dieback starting at the top. Bare branches at the crown that don't leaf out in spring.
- D-shaped exit holes. About 1/8 inch wide, on the bark. The shape is the giveaway — other borers make round or oval holes.
- Bark splits with serpentine galleries underneath. Peel a piece of bark off and look for snake-like tracks where larvae ate through the cambium.
- Heavy woodpecker activity. Woodpeckers go after the larvae, so increased pecking on an ash is a strong sign.
- Sprouts at the base. A stressed tree often pushes basal sprouts as a last attempt at survival.
Treat or remove?
This is the decision every Omaha ash-owner faces. The framework we use:
Treat if:
- The tree is less than 50% in canopy decline
- The trunk is structurally sound (no major cracks, no rot)
- The tree is in a high-value spot (shading the house, providing privacy, historic specimen)
- You're willing to commit to treatment every 2-3 years for the life of the tree
Remove if:
- More than 50% canopy decline
- Structural defects beyond EAB (rot, cracks, leans)
- The tree is in a low-value spot you'd otherwise just replant
- You don't want to manage long-term treatment
Treatment is real and it works. The injectable insecticide (TREE-äge / emamectin benzoate) is 90%+ effective when applied correctly to a tree that's still mostly healthy. Cost is roughly $10-15 per inch of trunk diameter, every 2-3 years. A 20-inch ash costs about $250 every 2-3 years to keep alive.
For most homeowners with one or two ash trees in the front yard, treatment is cheaper than removal-and-replant over a 10-year horizon, if the tree is in good shape now.
What removal looks like
Dead ash is the most dangerous tree we remove. The wood becomes brittle within a year of death — it doesn't behave like other deadwood. Climbers can't trust the limbs. Drop zones can't be approximated normally. We almost always crane-assist EAB removals on trees over 30 feet.
If you wait too long, removal cost goes up because the safe approach gets more expensive. A 40-foot ash removed while it still has structural wood: $900. The same tree two years later, fully dead and brittle: $1,400-$1,800 plus crane.
What to plant instead
Don't replant ash. Replant with diversity. Good Omaha replacement species:
- Kentucky coffeetree — native, tough, beautiful
- Bur oak — slow but worth it
- Hackberry — fast, adaptable
- Swamp white oak — handles our clay soils
- Catalpa — fast shade, unique flowers
Diversify your planting. The next pest will hit something. The neighborhoods that lose the least are the ones with the most variety.
Get an assessment
If you have an ash tree and you're not sure where it stands, we do free EAB assessments — we'll tell you whether to treat, when to remove, and what to plant in its place. No upsell, no pressure.