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Honored Contributor
Posts: 12,317
Registered: ‎03-09-2010

I thought our large arborvitae was looking brown and thought it was probably dying......to day something made me look really close and there were these hanging nests all over the tree...then even closer I could see a worm like thing crawling out, ewww!  

 

A quick description on google and I discovered the tree has bagworms....I have never heard of this before.  

 

Has anyone had this infestation and if so, how did you get rid of them?

 

We have no arborists in our area as that was suggested ...the other suggestion was to  pull, by hand each one off the tree and destroy.  

Honored Contributor
Posts: 69,397
Registered: ‎03-10-2010

@Mom2Dogs.  I have 400 rubber gloves I don't need.  Shall I send them to you?

 

I'd go to a garden shop, insecticide section, and start reading labels.

New Mexico☀️Land Of Enchantment
Esteemed Contributor
Posts: 5,460
Registered: ‎05-12-2012

@Kachina624 wrote:

@Mom2Dogs.  I have 400 rubber gloves I don't need.  Shall I send them to you?

 

I'd go to a garden shop, insecticide section, and start reading labels.


i wouldn't need your 400 rubber gloves.....i have 1 chainsaw!!

Esteemed Contributor
Posts: 5,040
Registered: ‎09-12-2010

I had bagworms a number of years ago on several trees. I think we had the option of pulling them off and burning them, or spray them. We bought something that we attached to our water hose and sprayed them....I remember buying the stuff at a Garden Center. It killed them but I think we still pulled the sacs off the trees once we knew the bagworms were dead. This was a number of years ago, so treatment options may have changed over the years.

Honored Contributor
Posts: 12,317
Registered: ‎03-09-2010

@Kachina624 thanks so much!

Right now I am in the thows of tearing wall paper off bathroom walls...then an full day of work on Wednesday and Thursday....I have no time for this sort of thing!

Valued Contributor
Posts: 903
Registered: ‎03-09-2010

I hate them.  Anything that you would spray right now will not work.  If you see them pick them off and stomp on them or burn them.  The best time to spray is in June.   If you type bagworms in your browser it gives several good suggestions of where to look for information.  We used to use what used to be called the Ohio line. I don't know if it is still called that or not. 

 

If you don't get them right away they will destroy your trees eventually.

 

Honored Contributor
Posts: 12,317
Registered: ‎03-09-2010

@hellokitty  I was reading and cannot remember all I read, I will have to go back and look but one of the articles said something about the bagworms feeding...how in the world do I know if they are feeding?

 

The tree is tall, and covered on one side.  I don't think we can pull them all off!

Regular Contributor
Posts: 258
Registered: ‎12-31-2010

Yes, we’ve had a similar issue with bagworms and found a great solution. I would highly recommend the product our local nursery told us about. It has saved many of our trees, but you must apply it 2-3 times a year. It’s called Ferti-lome Borer, Bagworm, Tent Caterpillar & Leaf Miner Spray. You mix it in a sprayer and spray the affected tree. Yes, we tried removing those nests things, but that became overwhelming a job. There were many thousands of those things on our huge arborvitae and they had spread to our pine trees and Leyland cypress too. After using the product two years, the problem has gotten much (much) better and the trees are recovering. I’ve had neighbors advise that they simply mix the product and pour it into the base of the tree. They claim that works too, but I follow the directions and treat each branch. It’s a strong poison so you must wear gloves and a mask. 

 

Regular Contributor
Posts: 258
Registered: ‎12-31-2010

I spray in early spring and again mid-summer. Huge dead-looking aeas of our aborvitae trees have come back full and green. I tell neighbors about treating their trees before the bagworms infest and badly weaken the tree. The weaker a tree gets, the more the bagworms seem to take over. 

Regular Contributor
Posts: 258
Registered: ‎12-31-2010

https://www.atwoods.com/ferti-lome-borer-bagworm-leafminer-spray-10082fl.html

 

It is listed for $15.99. You might find it locally too.