Tyler Arboretum in Middletown is under attack by an emerald ash borer that’s forced it to close 17 miles of trails to visitors, writes Frank Kummer for The Philadelphia Inquirer,

Contractor Cox & Co. will remove 900 dead ash trees along the deer fence trail that could fall. Some of the destroyed trees are more than 100 years old.

The emerald ash borer was first noticed in Butler County in 2007 and has since swept through the state’s forests.  

It’s killed millions of trees in the U.S. and Canada since it was discovered in Michigan in 2002.

The ash borer arrived in Philadelphia around 2012. Delaware County is one of the last counties to get hit with the infestation.

The beetle can kill a tree in three to four years.

.About 584 Tyler trees will be taken down first, at a cost of $500,000, allowing 9.5 miles of trails to reopen. Another $1.2 million will be spent to restore the landscape.

“This is an opportunity to face our ongoing loss of the ash trees and come out stronger on the other side with a long-term plan for regeneration,” said executive director Mike Skuja.

Read more about the devastating impact of the emerald ash borer to Tyler Arboretum in The Philadelphia Inquirer.