How to deal with Gypsy Moth Infestation: (Lymantria dispar)

[@tanana2070]

I started 2 months ago whacking the caterpillars with my garden trowel, every day, sometimes twice a day. Then I whacked the pupas. Now I am going at the moths and the eggs clusters. I spray them first with water/dish soap, dispatch the female quickly with the beveled end of a chop stick and drop her into a plastic container with same water/soap. I then spray the eggs with the same stuff, this makes them stick together so they don't fly away in the wind. I then scrape them into the plastic container. It is tedious and I can only do as high up as I can reach. Considering each cluster has up to 1000 eggs, and each one that hatches will eat 1 square yard of leaves, one cluster can potentially eat 1000 sq yards of leaves. ONE CLUSTER! I have destroyed countless thousands and will continue my quest until they're done for now. I kill the males too by the way. In the spring, late April, I will wrap my trees with duct tape, sticky side out. Start the caterpillar kill again, hopefully in my little piece of the world I will make a little dent and there will be fewer next year. If everyone did this with their own trees in their own yards, it would help considerably in the neighbourhoods. Sadly, doesn't help the forest.

[@pamelas3119]

Last year we had the same problem and for the caterpillars up high or eggs that were to high we used super soaker squirt guns filled with soapy water.

[@vKarl71]

6:00 What to do.

[@Abelincoln249]

Anybody who is have trouble with these caterpillars there's a best thing that you can do use clothes washing powder in the water and then throw it on the caterpillars they will start dying

[@tabbypressNorrieFranko]

Duct tape only works if you get these caterpillars early in the season. I am looking forward to trying this in the Spring. I tried this late in the Summer last year and the caterpillars were able to walk over the duct tape. Burlap tied around the trees did a better job. The caterpillars stayed under the burlap and I was able to sweep them into a bucket of soapy water several times a day. Good luck. I am not looking forward to another year of battling these pests. BTW they like walnut tree too.

[@aquariusrizing]

And pecans!

[@pamelas3119]

We tried the duck tape this year and I must admit, it did work for us.(about 3 rings together tight as could be around the trees). They walk around and around and wouldn’t cross it. This allowed us to squish them or spray soap them. Any little bit helps.

[@someoneyouknow2783]

Central Texas is having a crazy infestation of them this year. Thanks for the video!! Subscribed. Enjoying many of your videos on Great Reset too!

[@deniseallegra8918]

MAINE IS TOO! It's horrible

[@ininja32]

My dad told me how to deal with their nests. He said to cut it down from the trees limbs and burn the nest.

[@floreschris5574]

☹️ ne and all my honies Hate caterpillar plagues☹️

[@AlmostHomeChannel]

That is so unfortunate, wow what a crazy sight to see…sorry your going through this! Hope most of your garden and orchard will be ok through this. Thank you for sharing this useful tip!

[@HealthAndHomestead]

I should have looked more into it earlier and we would most likely have been able to save the fruit trees. I am away from home for a while and I can only trust in the Lord to take care of the garden.

[@TeamTnA44]

Right now we're infested. I'm in the lower eastern shore of md. I bought a product called tanglefoot tree wrap. I wrapped the trees and then spread the tanglefoot goop on the wrapping . I have gone through 3 rolls of wrap and a 4lb tub of goop. It's a real pain to do but hoping for good results. Dept of agriculture said sorry they were done spraying for this year. I got on a list for them to do a survey in the fall. I have 57 mature oaks , reds, whites, etc . Ran out of wrap and goop and waiting on another order so I can finish the last 17 trees. What's even more special is my wife and I are extremely allergic to them . I'm covered in hives. Yep that's a bonus. I bought a product called Telstar P to spray on the trees and bases around the trees. This stuff works. There are carcasses everywhere. Then I go around with my blower and blow the dead ones away and run em over with the lawn mower. I need a bagger though. Every bit helps. Stay vigilant. I hope this helps . I also bought a battery back pack sprayer to do 4 gallons at a time . It's quite a nightmare . I also sprayed the entire yard figuring when they came down to feed they would get the double whammy. It's also good for ticks, fleas, etc . Good luck folks this sucks 😕

[@Aquamarine325]

I live on Oak Leaves lane.😣 This is year number two. Poppy seeds falling from the sky like rain.🤪

[@matt8264]

I live in upstate NY and we are on YEAR 2 of this disaster. This year is WAY worse than last year and I am praying that this is it. The trees in our neighborhood are decimated, everyone's driveway is stained brown from all the poop. My patio was basically unusable the month of June as poop rained down on it, staining it. It literally sounds as if its raining outside all the time. When it does actually rain the poop expands to about 5 times the size making brown goo all over your car, driveway, etc. Its so disgusting as I try to walk on my driveway after a rain, poo is literally making it slippery. I power washed 5 times in 8 days. Its been crazy. Now they have all turned to moths and they are EVERYWHERE. Stuck to the trees and flying all over, its unbelievable and you have to see it to truly understand how bad things are. I really hope this is it because I cant take it anymore.

[@corinneinthecity]

Matt - Agreed. With a home in Austerlitz and Taghkanic, the moths are worse this year than last and I couldn't imagine it being worse. Terrified about next summer with the prediction of 3 years to a cycle. Basically can't even use the outside most of the Spring and now with the moths... It's just a plague we dodge every second! Good luck.

[@matt8264]

This year is predicted to be even worse!

[@jenniferwelsh7897]

@@matt8264 Where do you live in Upstate NY? I'm in Accord, and I'm having a serious problem over here. Didn't have anything at all last year!

[@matt8264]

@@jenniferwelsh7897 I’m across the River in Dutchess County. It’s year 3 now. I wrapped all my trees with duck tape and spread insect glue in it which captured thousands. I sprayed Sevin on the trees and that helped but unfortunately my trees are over 75 feet tall and the spray doesn’t reach. Shredded leaves and caterpillar poop everywhere. It’s a losing battle

[@Lucy-uq9jy]

@@matt8264 It is so sad. We have a beautiful extremely tall oak that I am so worried about.

[@calebjohnson9797]

That's horrible! So nice of that dude to bring them lol. Nice duck tape idea. Have you tried diatomaceous earth?

[@HealthAndHomestead]

I have tried it for ants but not for these caterpillars. Might be worth a try, thanks for the suggestion.

[@mw2sauce]

I am a licensed exterminator who specializes in this and every word this man said was true. You can also use BT spray when they are babies but it stops working after a few weeks once they’ve had time to grow and build resistance.

[@musicforce7736]

These thing is full here in upstate New York yesterday I ran into them

[@catherinetownsend-scott4372]

We were nailed with them too in Adirondacks

[@shunta7761]

I have them on my door frame and garage door what can i do ? 😭

[@bridgetdownes5254]

Northern Illinois is getting hit hard. All of McHenry County. We are waging war. List a birch, and 2 200 year old trees. My neighbor too. Using spray and a capsulated injectable. Will try the duct tape too. It is heart breaking 😢😢😭

[@eleonoramaggio9276]

I add that the larvae are initially diurnal but then become hairy and nocturnal, furthermore in Bacillus th. Kurstaki is sensitive to light, so it should be sprayed in the evening. There are also glues to brush on the market. You can also remove the felted eggs in winter by hand if you see them as the larvae stay inside in diapause until spring.

[@amandabradley884]

Ontario Canada was hit hard by these critters. You could hear the feces falling from the trees. They killed a ton of maples and deciduous trees. We saved our new apple and pear trees by checking them constantly and picking them off. Will be trying this technique this year. Good luck.

[@pamelas3119]

You are exactly right we didn’t know what was going on at first with the black seeds (we realized later it was poop) falling from the trees and when they grew into caterpillars and ate all our leaf bearing trees until they were empty then they moved on into all the pine trees. It was a daily nightmare for a long time.

[@jimbo3779]

Gypsy moth was brought into Boston area in 1868 +/-by an entrepreneur to try to replicate Japanese silk worms. They escaped the lab and spread over the decades all across Eastern North America.

[@HealthAndHomestead]

I did not know that. Thanks for sharing. Blessings.

[@angellacyr1702]

Wow!!!

[@psychicviking]

Duct/Duck tape might kill ants on all trees that get ants.

[@HealthAndHomestead]

I'll bet it would.