EMPORIA 620-340-2484
TOPEKA 785-379-1302
EMPORIA 620-340-2484
TOPEKA 785-379-1302
When you see the silk bags in your trees near the end of summer, that is the result of the fall webworm. These little pests cause almost no permanent damage to the host tree but they can be very unsightly. Fall webworms are easily seen from August to September. This is when their webs are large and located toward the ends of the branches. People often confuse fall webworms with bagworms but they are two completely different pests.
Most people never see the actual caterpillar that causes the silk webs, but if you run into one, this is what they look like.
These caterpillars feed on over 100 different species of plants but are commonly seen on walnut, hickory, pecan, mulberry, poplar, willow, sweetgum, linden, ash, and most fruit trees. There are 2 generations of this pest per year. Most of the time the first generation in May is smaller and goes unnoticed. The second generation is active late July to August but their remains can be seen into October.
Fall webworms rarely do permanent damage to trees and therefore treatment is usually not warranted. Pruning out infected branches is a common control method, but in reality, that is doing more damage to the plants than these little insects. BT is a pesticide labeled for control of caterpillars if control is needed for aesthetics. Bt is a bacteria that will kill the target insect but will not harm the beneficial insects.
If you have fall webworms and can’t live with them, give Wellnitz Tree Care a call and we can help you out.
The emerald ash borer was first found in Topeka in 2017. We put out an… Read More
From time to time we have customers ask us to “top” top their trees. Most… Read More
310 Congress Street, Emporia, KS 66801 • 5709 SW 21st St., Suite 108, Topeka, KS 66604