Prevention and protection is the only way to be successful
in controlling certain pest. Boring insects, sod webworms, “the nasty rascal,
the chinch bug”, roaches, and termites are just a few more.
Borers are generally moths or beetles as adults. They fly
around and lay eggs on leaf petioles (where the little stem that comes off a
leaf attaches to the main stem), cracks in the bark, or wounds in the plant.
Generally, when the egg hatches, a larva emerges and tunnels
inside the twig, tree, or vine. The larva is the part of the life cycle that
does the damage. Since larva get inside
the tree, it makes it very difficult to control with spray or dust
applications. The borer overwinters as a larva and emerges generally in the
spring as an adult.
Treating the tree (not a fruit, nut, or vegetable producing
tree) with a systemic product like Dominion or Safari as a ground drench as
well as spraying the tree to protect the tree from adults that are laying eggs
and an oil product to suffocate eggs is a good strategy for high value trees.
Depending on the borer, you would target your spraying when the adults are
active (usually in the spring).
Prevention is critical with borers because once they are inside
the tree or plant, the plant protects them.
Pest Management Professionals do a great job of protecting
our homes from termites. You would not want to watch your house get eaten up
then think, “hey, I might have a problem with my house. The second story toilet
just fell through the floor with my mother-in-law on it.”
Termites do a lot of damage very quickly. The cost of
protecting your house to prevent the damage is very low. If you have a
reputable Pest Management Professional do the work, their insurance should
cover any damage unless you violated the contract (example – added on a porch
and did not let them know).
Termites are one insect that should be left to a
professional to control. Termites attack what is generally our highest price
asset – our home.
While working in my yard last night, I did see a few sod
webworm moths. They’re back!
