Aphids have created a sticky situation in San Carlos, requiring city crews to spray down multiple blocks of Laurel Street and trim back tree canopies to prevent excrement from the bugs from gooping up the walkways.
“San Carlos has experienced infestations in the past but this year seems to be especially challenging,” Public Works Director Steven Machida said in an email. “The arborist has been monitoring the trees to evaluate the aphid infestation, effectiveness of the systemic solution and the health of the trees.”
Recognizing aphids, a small insect that feeds on sap, has become an issue in the county, Machida said the city worked with an arborist to develop a plan for preventing the bugs from becoming a problem.
The initial recommendation was to inject a solution into the roots of the trees during the spring and to spray the tree canopy with a saf-R-soap rinse at midyear, Machida said. Seeing as tree sap production has increased recently, Machida said the arborist does not recommend an additional root treatment. Instead, the next step is to trim the canopy to reduce the amount of leaves the aphids can attach to and wash the sidewalks to remove the sap, he said.
Trees lining the 1100 and 1200 blocks of Laurel Street were trimmed this week and the sidewalks were washed. Those lining the 600, 700 and 800 blocks of Laurel were scheduled for trimming this week and next with the sidewalks being rinsed once that work is complete, Machida said.
“The city will also be performing a weekly wash on each block until all the leaves have dropped and the aphids are no longer on the trees,” Machida said. “After the first of the year, we will again meet with the arborist to determine the schedule to apply the systemic solution for the upcoming season.”
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Keep the discussion civilized. Absolutely NO personal attacks or insults directed toward writers, nor others who make comments.
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