Watch out! The bagworms are out in full force this year and they are wreaking havoc on many Kansas City area landscape plants. Not sure what to look for? Bagworms form a silk-like bag that is mixed with plant parts that can be up to 2 inches in length. Since we have had both a warm winter and spring these little nuisances have arrived several weeks early.
The favorite plants that they love to munch on tend to be junipers and arborvitae, however, bagworms will feed on a variety of plant materials. You want to give all of your landscape plants a look over for these young worm-like insects. Evidence of their presence will be things like browning spots on foliage, their silken bags, and dead plants that have been severely eaten.
The best action against bagworms are to use insecticides right after they hatch in the late spring or very early summer. But by late summer, insecticides will be useless against them, then handpicking and destruction of the bags is recommended.
Have you seen evidence of bagworms or any other insect in your landscape?
Source: kcgardens.kansascity.com, Photo Credit: http://bugguide.net/node/view/419371