Have 5 acres south of Ft. Worth - noticed some "webbing" in mature oak/cedar trees last spring and now is spreading everywhere - don't want to lose trees (not talking about a few trees!) - What can we do or who can we trust to hire and do a good job - thanks

There is a landscaping/service company in SW Fort Worth area that uses organic treatments. Check the business listing on the website; I think their name is AJ Southwest. For this problem, you would probably benefit from Bt kurstaki, sold as Thuricide in Lowe's stores and others. It's a bacteria that is ingested by caterpillars and kills them. It is usually sold in liquid form to be mixed with water and sprayed ont he trees. Be sure you do this in the evening as UV rays will kill the bacteria and thwart your efforts. Make sure it's a caterpillar that is doing this and not just a bunch of helpful spiders cleaning up an out of hand aphid or other pest problem. Good luck! I hope this is helpful to you.

Do whatever you need to do to encourage paper wasps around your property. They love to eat those caterpillars and will keep your large acreage free from webs indefinitely.

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David Hall
Moderator
Dirt Doctor Lawns Forum

Where can we find a good resource on the web for identifying bugs? I've got some wasps right next to a porch door that I need to deal with.

~Dave

I've read a few references to 'paper wasps' & obviously don't know what they are. Tricho grammas? Yellow jackets? Someone let me know.
Plano Patty

It is way too early for web building caterpillars.

Is the webbing a silvery looking cast on the bark of the trees? If so, it is harmless. Yes it is caused by an insect but it is not damaging to the tree. A water hose will get rid of the webs.

Paper wasps build paper-based nests under your eaves and in trees. Dealing with them is as simple as leaving them alone. You may get close to them at times but if you don't wave your arms around swatting at them, they'll leave you absolutely alone. I've had a wasp nest in my back entryway for a couple years with no problems. I'm home all day and rarely do I see them actually flying. However, if you are in any danger of actually opening the door into the nest, they you should relocate it somewhere else. These paper wasps are very beneficial to the garden.

It has been reported that wasps will bump their hosts when something is wrong in the garden. Bumping is when they fly into you head first and bounce away. One lady reported getting bumped in the face six times. I would be screaming and half way down the block but she had the wherewithal to look for the problem. Turns out the problem was a spider had built a web that blocked off the wasps' path out of their nest. She cleared away the web and the wasps went back to their normal routine.

Trichogramma wasps are nearly invisible. They are not paper wasps.

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David Hall
Moderator
Dirt Doctor Lawns Forum

I'm not so sure it's too early for webworms, because I just sprayed some with Bt today in a peach tree. We do have lots of paper wasps, red wasps, dirt daubers, guinea wasps, and they don't always take care of them.