The Oak Processionary Moth and Brown-Tail Moth can both cause damages to your trees. Here's how to identify them, what damage they can do and how to treat your trees if they're affected by them.
Oak Processionary Moth:
OPM caterpillars move about in late spring and early summer in nose-to-tail processions. They feed almost exclusively on oak trees and can sometimes be seen processing across the ground between oak trees, and clustering together as they feed on oak leaves. The caterpillars have tiny hairs containing a toxin which can lead to itching skin lesions and occasionally sore throats, breathing difficulties or eye problems. The caterpillars feed on oak leaves and this leads to severe loss of foliage and weakening of the trees. This can make them more vulnerable to other diseases. Remedial treatments such as fertilisation, soil de-compaction of the rooting environment and mulch rings are recommended to aid in tree recovery. We can offer foliar sprays of contact insecticide of the affected areas from ground level using our specialist spray rig. We can also carry out physical nest removal and incineration of all affected and contaminated materials safely back at our green waste recycling facility.
Brown- Tail Moth:
Brown- Tail moth adults are white with brown hairs on the end of their abdomens. They emerge in July and August and lay batches of 150-250 eggs. They usually affect trees in the Rosaceae family and include hawthorn, blackthorn, plum, cherry, rose and blackberry. The caterpillars hatch after about three weeks and begin grazing the foliage and producing webbing and can cause some defoliation. Again, we can treat with foliar sprays of contact insecticide of the affected trees and can carry out nest removal.
Contact Tree Fella today if you have any moth related queries. Simply call 01702 216 766 to speak to a member of our team. #OakProcessionaryMoth #Caterpillars #BrownTailMoth
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