Questions re caterpillars

[dragondick]

This is the first time that sacs (at least 10, & about the size of a grape fruit, but elongated in shape) appeared on an apple tree in my backyard. These sacs, when ready, will have hundreds of caterpillars per sac, & they crawl all over the place.

1. These sacs did not show up in the winter, where did they come from?
2. How do I prevent the above?
3. I was told by a friend that the caterpillars will eat the leaves of the tree, & the tree will die. Any truth in this?
4. Is it a good thing to keep these sacs on the trees, or should I cut the branches where these sacs are attached to?
5. Will these caterpillars turn into butteflies? If I destroy these sacs, am I (in a small way) destroying the eco-balance?
6. How come there are no caterpillar sacs on a birch (?) on my front lawn although I noticed a lot of sacs on other types of trees along an adjacent street?

Any comments will be appreciated.

 

[lasslicker]

These are known as 'Tent Caterpillars' and are common to fruit trees.

Best thing you can do is cut off the affected areas of your tree and dispose of these 'tents of caterpillars' before they exit and devour your tree's leaves.

 

[hunter001]

http://www.pmra-arla.gc.ca/english/consum/tentcaterpillars-e.html

 

[Dash]

Ya- you want to prevent the rise of MOTHRA. He'll ravage and destroy the city and only Godzilla can stop him!

 

[Shades]

Wait until dusk...the little buggers will be in their nest for the night...then best way to get rid of them is to take a torch to them. Quick efficient and terminal. With this rain should be safe to do the burn.




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Remember; don't eat the crispy critters!

 

[Big Sleazy]

Always a dilemma. The only way to get rid of them is to burn them out. But no butterflies. And if you don't burn them. No trees.

BS

 

[club69]

Always a dilemma. The only way to get rid of them is to burn them out. But no butterflies. And if you don't burn them. No trees.

BS

those are moth, not butterfly

 

[antlerman]

trim the brach off about 6" above the nests.
dispose of the bag by fire is the best way...
or for fun....
soak the nest while it is still in the tree with wasp killer......light match .....stand far away and thow match.....

you will have th following results.....no nest.....no tree...great fire works.....

 

[dragondick]

I will rename myself "The Caterpillar Killer"!

 

[goalie000]

Have already had to Burn a few nests on my property. Propane torch works well.

 

[Aardvark154]

Besides the cutting and burning mentioned above another approach would be to purchase some BT Bacillus thuringiensis (a natural bacterial insecticide that is fairly specific to caterpillars and beetles) follow the directions and spray it on the tree. It is quite effective.

 

[hinz]

Besides the cutting and burning mentioned above another approach would be to purchase some BT Bacillus thuringiensis (a natural bacterial insecticide that is fairly specific to caterpillars and beetles) follow the directions and spray it on the tree. It is quite effective.

That's my weekend project last week after visiting my favourite SP

BTK all the way!! Do it twice if necessary.......

 

[dragondick]

All along I thought these tent caterpillars are the result of "aerial colonization", I found out today that after being hatched, these caterpillars actually crawl from the bottom of the tree, then build a "tent".

(I was mowing the grass, then cut away heavy shrub around a tree. That's when I saw hundreds of these caterpillars ready to march up the tree.)

Fellow Terbites, check the bottom of the trees, "ambush" them B4 they move up. They feast on tree leaves. I saved one tree, I hope.

 

[Jade4u]

I remember when I was younger my Mom used a long stick poked a hole in those sacks and had a hose hooked up with a bottle full of dish soap and made the tree all slippery with the dish soap got the buggers on the ground and just started squashing them all with her feet. If they tried to get back up the tree they couldn't as the soap was too slippery for them to climb back up. She finished them off in a more environmentally friendly way without harsh chemicals and had the suckers trapped on the ground and just mushed them to smitherines.