There has been a rumor circulating since March 2 that cheap mulch from hurricane-damaged New Orleans is being shipped to large retailers in the Southeast.

I first saw it in an e-mail from Athens, Ga., that said Louisiana is trying to foist tons of this mulch on any state or company willing to haul it away. It said it will be showing up in The Home Depot and Lowe's stores at dirt-cheap prices but with one huge problem: Formosan termites will be in many of those bags.

"New Orleans is one of the few areas in the country where the Formosan termites have gotten a stronghold, and most of the trees blown down were already badly infested with those termites. These termites can eat a house in no time at all and we have no good control against them, so be sure to tell your friends to avoid cheap mulch and know where it came from," the e-mail went on to say.

On March 3, Georgia extension agents received an e-mail from Dan Suiter, extension entomologist for the University of Georgia.

Dr. Suiter had received an e-mail from the Louisiana Department of Agriculture and Forestry in response to the rumor.

"The Louisiana Department of Agriculture and Forestry, and the Office of Agricultural and Environmental Science have a quarantine in place in the Katrina- and Rita-affected parishes. All of the wood debris in the quarantine areas of the state of Louisiana is going to an approved landfill within the designated quarantine area. There are a multitude of (state and federal) government agencies that are looking at this debris every day as it is deposited into these landfills. The contractors that are mulching and hauling the debris know of the regulations and are abiding by them, according to quarantine requirements. If there is anyone that has knowledge of debris moving out of the quarantine area, they are to contact the LDAF. These are serious allegations and will be taken seriously."

Even before I received the e-mail from Dr. Suiter, I had talked with UGA professor Brian Forschler about the termite dangers. He basically called the rumor an "urban legend."

He said that colonies of Formosan termites are not well established in those trees; they cannot eat a house in days; and they can be controlled as easily as our subterranean termites.

The bottom line is, this mulch is being quarantined and not shipped out to stores. So rest easy and tell your friends to ignore the rumor.

Sid Mullis is director for the University of Georgia extension service office for Richmond County. Call him at 821-2349, or send e-mail to smullis@uga.edu.