Here’s a version of a question I have been getting the last
few weeks:
“While looking over
my crepe myrtle (could be oak, maple, etc) the other day, I noticed a large
group of black bugs on the bark of my tree and a fine tight webbing. None of my leaves appeared to be eaten. When I tried to scare them away with a
branch, they scattered and then regrouped back on the tree. This group of black bugs has me worried. This is one of my favorite trees and I do not
want anything bad to happen to it. Do
you have any ideas as to what these bugs are and why they are on my tree?”
Not to worry! It
sounds like you have tree cattle or barklice (louse). These are good guys. The tree cattle clean the tree by eating dead
organic matter and lichens (algae and moss combination) out of the bark
crevices of the tree. Even though crepe
myrtles have smooth bark, there are plenty of places for the tree cattle to
find food. They are the housecleaners of
the trees! Maples are another favorite tree of the tree cattle.
These are the same bugs that produce that stocking like
webbing that looks like something out of a horror movie. The webbing is tight against the bark of the
tree just like a stocking. It is found
on limbs as well as trunks of trees. The
tree cattle use this webbing as protection from predators and weather.
Tree cattle do not harm a tree. They do not eat leaves, just
dead organic matter. If they are really
bugging you, you could spray them with a blast of water. I would let them clean the bark of the tree,
so you do not have excessive organic debris buildup.
If you have a lot of lichens, you may want to check the
general health of the tree. Lichens produce their own food like plants. So if
you have a healthy thick canopy of foliage from the tree, lichens will not grow
because they cannot get the sunlight they need to survive. A soil test and the appropriate
fertilizer should help with this situation unless the tree has other cultural
issues (compacted soils, wet soils, dry soil, planted incorrectly or in the
wrong place …).
Last week, I laid to rest many fall army worms. They
attacked my yard as well as my mother’s yard and my counter attack proved to be
too much for them for now. They are known to launch a counter attack, so in a
week or so I will launch a preemptive strike (if all goes as planned). I do not
want to go out of town and return to a chowed on lawn.
The daylight hours are getting shorter. Time to get your
preemergent product of choice out for winter annual weeds. Remember to treat
your beds as well as your lawn.
Always read, understand and follow product label. The
product label is a Federal Law.
Bill Lamson-Scribner
can be reached during the week at Possum’s Landscape and Pest Control Supply.
Possum’s has three locations 481
Long Point Rd in Mt. Pleasant
(971-9601), 3325 Business Circle
in North Charleston
(760-2600), or 606 Dupont Rd,
in Charleston
(766-1511). Bring your questions to a Possum’s location, or visit us at
http://www.possumsupply.com. You can also call in your questions to “ The
Garden Clinic”, Saturdays from noon to 1:00, on 1250 WTMA (The Big Talker). The Horticulture Hotline is
available 24 / 7 at possumsupply.com.
