In this summer of wildfires, the only ones doing any tenting are the caterpillars.
In my front yard is a black walnut tree that the Captain and I planted when it was no more than a six-foot high stick. Twenty-six years later it is a tall tree, desperately reaching for the sky as the leylandi cypress beside it crowds it more every year.
But see who is camping in the walnut tree! With all the warnings about camping being banned in so many places, these tenters have invaded my yard AGAIN! They attacked the apple trees in the early spring. Then they came back to take up residence in the walnut tree (the kind that has walnuts) in the backyard, and now they are taking up residence in the ornamental black walnut in the front yard. They’re getting smarter too. This time they are much higher and out of my reach.
Here is a closer look.
And an even closer look. You can see that many of the leaves have already been eaten. I looked up tent caterpillars and found out that these are most likely the larvae of the malacosoma moth. I don’t think I like moths anymore.
Guess I’ll have to call the fire department to come and get this tent out of the tree. They have high ladders and brave men, but oh, hold on — they’re all busy fighting wildfires just now. I’ll have to see if I can find a good Samaritan to help me out.
Do you have these unwanted guests tenting in your yard too?
August 25, 2018 at 6:02 pm
Yes. Cut and soaked in vinegar. Leave my lilac bush alone!!!
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August 25, 2018 at 6:04 pm
Oooh! That’s harsh! But then, so is burning them – which is what we did in the spring, but wouldn’t dare do now. I might have to get out the vinegar, but this could take a lot.
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August 25, 2018 at 6:27 pm
Hope you can solve this 🙂
Good luck !
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August 25, 2018 at 9:00 pm
Thanks, Hans.
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August 25, 2018 at 7:14 pm
Haven’t seen them here yet.
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August 25, 2018 at 8:58 pm
Good. I hope you don’t. They seem to be everywhere around here this year.
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August 25, 2018 at 7:46 pm
They seem to come in three to four years intervals. We had lots in our apple trees a few years ago. I cut off the affected branches and burned them tent caterpillars and all. Good luck with your unwelcome tenters, Anneli!
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August 25, 2018 at 8:59 pm
We burned the ones we found in the spring and then I thought (wrongly) that we were done with them.
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August 25, 2018 at 8:05 pm
One of the many reasons I’m not a gardener.
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August 25, 2018 at 8:58 pm
Chicken.
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August 25, 2018 at 8:20 pm
Sounds like you have an infestation of fall webworm. Not easy to control.
In the spring you likely have an infestation of Tent caterpillars not webworms. They are not the same critters but both can and often do cause a lot of damage to your trees.
Happy Gardening
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August 25, 2018 at 8:58 pm
That’s interesting. I looked up that webworm and I’ve never seen the orange/white/black moth it turns into, but I can’t even be sure of the colour of the caterpillars. Maybe when I get that tent out of there, I can get a picture of the caterpillars and track them down farther. Thanks for your help.
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August 25, 2018 at 10:33 pm
These “tents” appear to be very prevalent all over the island. On our way to Victoria the other day, I noticed so many of these nests up high in the trees. With the cooler nights setting in, I don’t think I would even bother with these campers if they were somewhere high up in my trees. They will vacate soon enough. The leaves will be gone soon regardless of the temporary squatters on your property.
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August 26, 2018 at 7:46 am
I suppose you’re right, Sonja. The leaves will be gone soon enough. The walnut is one of the last to lose its leaves and looks pretty for a long time, and I do wonder if it saps the strength of the tree if they lose their leaves too soon, but yes, that is one good thing about winter. It’s the end of the smorgasbord for the insects.
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August 25, 2018 at 11:14 pm
I used an organic caterpillar solution attached to a garden hose to get rid of the tenters. I just pointed the water/solution spray into the upper branches. I don’t remember the name of what I used but a visit to a greenhouse should fix that. 🙂
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August 26, 2018 at 7:47 am
I’ll remember that for next year’s infestation. Thanks, Lynette.
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August 26, 2018 at 4:14 am
We just had to take down a few tents ourselves, Anneli.
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August 26, 2018 at 7:48 am
They really are pests, aren’t they? I don’t mind a few bugs getting a meal but these things can devastate a small orchard.
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August 26, 2018 at 4:41 am
We do. Not a good thing!
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August 26, 2018 at 7:49 am
So I’m not alone. Sorry you are also having to deal with these critters.
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August 26, 2018 at 10:29 am
Today I found one of the white ones. They’re unusual, so cute, and quite dangerous to touch.
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August 26, 2018 at 11:20 am
A white caterpillar?
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August 27, 2018 at 3:42 am
Yes.
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August 26, 2018 at 7:51 am
Sorry to see those, Anneli. 😦 Fortunately, we don’t have those in our trees. But even without them, they are suffering enough in the present drought.
Have a wonderful Sunday, and good luck with removing the parasites,
Pit
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August 26, 2018 at 2:39 pm
Thanks, Pit. Much as I don’t like to have caterpillars in my trees, I don’t want them to suffer either. (A quick death for them would suit me. But the older I get, the more I feel bad for thoughts like that.)
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August 26, 2018 at 9:06 am
I was told that the reason we have so many tent caterpillars this year is because of the scarcity of wasps. Apparently wasps love them and keep their number down. Although it is rather pleasant eating outdoors without wasps buzzing around your face just as you start to take a bite of the BBQ salmon..
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August 26, 2018 at 9:54 am
I didn’t know that about the wasps. So they do some good after all. I know they say that wasps (yellow jackets) do the job of pollinating too, just as bees do, so I’ve stopped trying to exterminate them, unless they come between me and my food. Wish they were here to eat those caterpillars.
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August 26, 2018 at 1:02 pm
Ugh, Anneli. I don’t have these, but we had them when I lived on the east coast. My dad used to wrap the trees and put goop on the wrapping so the caterpillars couldn’t climb up the trunk. They can do a lot of damage. 😦
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August 26, 2018 at 1:06 pm
Oh! I thought the moths or butterflies flew up into the trees and laid eggs which then hatched and turned into caterpillars that fed on the leaves. I’m not sure what happens after that. Cocoons, chrysalises? I’ve used the paper with sticky stuff to keep the ants off the trees. Could that have been what your dad was doing?
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August 26, 2018 at 2:39 pm
I think so. I’m not any expert on this stuff, but I clearly remember my dad’s war on the tent caterpillars and wrapping around the trees. My brothers and I used to scrape the caterpillars from the bottom of the tree into jars. I won’t tell you what we used to do to them. Ugh.
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August 26, 2018 at 2:41 pm
I’m always learning something new. Now you have my wheels turning about the fate of the caterpillars….
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August 26, 2018 at 1:07 pm
PS Did you get my email note?
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August 26, 2018 at 2:42 pm
Just looked for it and fixed. Thank you!!! 😀
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August 26, 2018 at 4:32 pm
Welcome. Any time.
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August 26, 2018 at 2:37 pm
Yikes! Good luck ridding yourself of them.
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August 26, 2018 at 4:32 pm
Tnx. I will get rid of them sooner or later.
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August 26, 2018 at 6:42 pm
Wow! No, I’ve never even heard of them! I do hope the solution is found before more damage occurs. If it’s not one thing….
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August 26, 2018 at 7:24 pm
Yup! Always something!
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August 27, 2018 at 7:04 am
We don’t think of caterpillars as ‘smart’. But they are—or shall I say, like all of nature, they are bent on surviving. As you destroy them, they build their nest higher and higher, outwitting their enemies—us!
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August 27, 2018 at 7:31 am
They do learn to survive.
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August 30, 2018 at 1:41 pm
Those tents could give a person nightmares. We don’t have them here (at least not this year). I see them when I travel south, though. Hate ’em.
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August 30, 2018 at 2:39 pm
The Captain will be home in a couple of days. He’ll be thrilled to see the Honeydew List I have for him. Honey do this, and Honey do that. The tent caterpillars are at the top of the list.
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August 31, 2018 at 2:50 am
ABSOLUTELY!
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September 4, 2018 at 10:09 am
Diese Raupen kenne ich nicht. Aber es gibt ja so viele verschiedene. Man weiß oft gar nicht, ob es ein Schädling ist oder nicht. Ich hoffe, du findest einen Weg, sie zu bekämpfen.
Liebe Grüße,
Martina
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September 4, 2018 at 10:12 am
The Captain is home now and will take care of it.
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September 4, 2018 at 10:14 am
Das ist gut. Er wird einen Weg finden.
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