A melaleuca-devouring weevil imported two years ago as a biological control agent has more than satisfied expectations about its appetite for the pest tree. But groups of the 3/8-inch insect, also ...

The spread of the invasive tree melaleuca is being thwarted in Florida, thanks to a cooperative program that includes enlisting the help of the tree's natural enemies in Australia. The spread of ...

Interested in purchasing a weevil, a “tick with a snout”? What about a psyllid, a microscopic fly? Scientists at the University of Florida agricultural extension office in St. Lucie County think ...

An industrious, sap-sucking insect may help halt the unwanted spread of melaleuca trees in South Florida's famed Everglades. Melaleuca, a fast-growing invader from Australia, is taking over some 14 to ...

The Australian melaleuca tree was imported into South Florida in the early part of the century to dry out "worthless swampland" and transform it into lumber-producing forests. At the time, the tree ...

MIAMI - It seemed like a good idea at the time. With Floridians clamoring to drain the Everglades, forester John Gifford had a more modest proposal: plant thirsty trees around the edges to draw off ...

A slice from the last melaleuca tree in the Big Cypress National Preserve might make a fine trophy for Fran Mainella's office wall. Yet, before the campaign to eradicate the Australian pest from the ...