This factsheet is for gardeners, homeowners, and landscapers who want to understand the impacts of lead in soil. It covers where soil lead comes from, why it matters for children and adults, current EPA and Connecticut guidelines, how to sample the yard and garden soil, what the soil test result means, and steps to take if soil is contaminated.

Connecticut households, it can help reduce trash, make use of the large amount of fall leaves that many properties produce, and turn common yard and kitchen materials into a valuable soil amendment.

The Norway maple (Acer platanoides) is a broad-canopied deciduous tree, and an invasive plant. It is common in urban landscapes, and along roadsides. It is increasingly found to be invading undisturbed forests and woodlands.

Stink bugs (Pentatomidae) are shield-shaped true bugs, distinguished by a large, triangular scutellum that covers the abdomen between the folded wings. They can be damaging to crops and fruits if they occur in large numbers and can be difficult to control. Some stink bugs are predatory and feed on other insects or arthropods, but not on plants.

During the fall wooly aphid activity may be found on beech and other hardwoods. Particularly on American beech in the Northeast, the native beech blight wooly aphid, Grylloprociphilus imbricator, may be found by the hundreds actively feeding on branches and twigs well into November. 

Beech bark disease (BBD) is a serious disease of native American and non-native European beech trees, caused by the feeding of the non-native felted beech scale, Cryptococcus fagisuga. The feeding pierces the bark, which provides an opening for subsequent infection by the native fungal pathogens Neonectria ditissima, and N. faginata.