Tree Worms

Debra K.
by Debra K.
How do I get rid of this without them falling everywhere and on Me???!!!! I'm finding them clear up the driveway, in the garage and even a couple IN The House!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
  25 answers
  • Debra K. Debra K. on Aug 24, 2013
    Thanks!! I knew they weren't called Tree worms and I couldn't think of the right name, ha!!!!!!
  • We call them tent caterpillars. Which ever way you use be sure to bag up the remains for the trash, don't add anything from this to your compost pile.
  • Evelyn R Evelyn R on Aug 25, 2013
    We always burned them after we collected them... one year they were all over the side of our house, in the lawn, all the way down to the tree row.... ugh!
  • Lorraine Nylund Lorraine Nylund on Aug 25, 2013
    The offending branch is cut off right next to the tent of caterpillars and burned in a fire like you would burn fall leaves...or bagged an disposed of.
  • Catherine Smith Catherine Smith on Aug 26, 2013
    You can also spray the tree leaves with BT (Bacillus thuringiensis) it's specific for worms. Normally sold under the trade name Dipel and comes in either powder or concentrate you can spray. Since it's non-toxic to anything but worms, you can spray it anywhere, including your house area and lawn. Burning them out is also effective, but I'm always concerned about the potential for an accident. You can also check the trees during the winter and early spring for their egg cases, just remove and either crush or drop in a bucket of soapy water.
  • Gail Salminen Gail Salminen on Aug 26, 2013
    @Debra K. for prevention next year, there is a goo (don't know the name of it, but a nursery should be able to tell you) that you use to make a ring around the trunk of the tree. That prevents the catepillars from crawling up the tree in the first place. We had this problem with our flowering crab a couple of years in a row, but not since we used the goo ring.
  • Beth King Beth King on Aug 26, 2013
    If that is very high up it would be worth the money to hire a professional.
  • Pattiann65 Pattiann65 on Aug 26, 2013
    MyGrandfather used a long stick in a swirling motion to gather the worms and web then put them in a galvinized pail and burfnt them up in the pail he had them in his pine trees and it always worked and kept them off of you. Hope it helps fast and effective.
  • Llalla Lara Llalla Lara on Aug 26, 2013
    We used to have them in all our trees every year! I hated them! They'd be on our porch wall, everywhere! We tried everything to get rid of them, but they kept coming back. We finally had to cut down these trees... we kept one that is far from the house, and they finally went away. We planted other trees, and now have our nice shade back.
  • I agree with Catherine Smith ^ABOVE^!! I think putting Epsom Salts around the base works well too!
  • Don Gale Don Gale on Aug 26, 2013
    Have a professional spray!
  • Judy Judy on Aug 26, 2013
    This is FIRE SEASON. Do not burn them! Spray with an insecticide or cut & bag them to be hauled off with the trash.
  • Becky P Becky P on Aug 26, 2013
    these things give me the heebie jeebies.
  • Hilliriah Jacobs Hilliriah Jacobs on Aug 26, 2013
    i've never seen these type of worms but i have this tree that bears a lovely white flower some people call it bridal bouquet some call it a type of the frangipany group one day i was passing next to it and saw about 4-5 little worms on one leaf well i just pull that branch down and ask my son to cut the tree down i also would like to know to get rid of worms because i love the tree and flower
    • Judy Judy on Aug 27, 2013
      @Hilliriah Jacobs You had the entire tree cut down because of a few worms on one leaf? Why?
  • Alicia Alicia on Aug 26, 2013
    Years ago in a certain area of Vermont, these insects invested an area so bad that they were all over the ground at my aunts house and the ground was just slippery goo and you could barely walk anywhere. These insects are nothing to ignore. They seem to prefer a certain tree type and I am planning to cut our trees down to keep them from spreading. In the meantime we take a long branch with a rag soaked in gasoline and light it on fire and burn the ones we can reach. Its a nasty project, but it does help keep them at bay. I live in NH and it has been very wet and rainy this summer. But those of you who live in dry areas...not a good idea. By the way...we always have our hose ready, just in case!
    • Judy Judy on Aug 27, 2013
      @Alicia Kamuda DO NOT set tree branches on fire in the middle of fire season!
  • VickMarie VickMarie on Aug 26, 2013
    They are simply bag worms.....if you are in the country burn them with charcoal lighter and have a bucket readly......in the city....spray w/bleach.
    • Judy Judy on Aug 27, 2013
      @VickMarie DO NOT set tree branches on fire in the middle of fire season!
  • Nancy Thrift Nancy Thrift on Aug 26, 2013
    my husband said to put a rag on end of pole, add lighter fluid to rag, light rag, hold up to the area to burn the nest. keep water handy.
    • See 1 previous
    • Betty Swift Betty Swift on Aug 27, 2013
      @Nancy Thrift The rag doused with lighter fluid on the end of a pole will burn the bag, or web, the worms will fall and will not rebuild the web. We got rid of ours and it did not set the tree limbs on fire.
  • Yvonne McKinley Yvonne McKinley on Aug 27, 2013
    These are Tent Caterpillars or Web worms NOT Bag worms, which you usually find on pine trees in a cocoon like bag that hangs down (has a woody look) and we always burned them.. This year we heard of another remedy...tying a rope soaked in oil around the base of the tree and so far, this year it has worked. They come from the ground and work their way up the tree.
  • Amaryllis Amaryllis on Aug 27, 2013
    Just poke a hole in the web and the wasps and such will take care of the problem. Dinner served! No pesticides or firetrucks.
  • Amber Somppi Amber Somppi on Aug 28, 2013
    wasps love to dine on worms
  • Carolyn Morris Carolyn Morris on Aug 29, 2013
    This looks like web worms. Take a stick or something to reach the web and tear a hole in it. The birds will take care of the worms!
  • Alicia Alicia on Sep 14, 2013
    @Judy I live in NH and we have had so much rain this year that we have mushrooms growing on the lawn. No chance of setting anything on fire. We only barely touch the caterpillars nests and they just french fry and they fall to the ground. All our trees are on lawn, so no worries.
    • See 1 previous
    • Traci Kenison Traci Kenison on Sep 20, 2013
      @Judy There is 5 seasons in Oregon. Winter, Summer, Fire, and then Fall. I use to live in Central Oregon. So yes fire is a problem there. As it is here in Utah.
  • Jeanette S Jeanette S on Sep 15, 2013
    Having been raised in the country, we had to take care of things the best way we could. Have a hose handy and turned on with a good sprayer attachment. Tie a rag soaked in kerosene on the end of a cane pole (daddy always used a fishing pole). Light the rag and burn them out! This is a multi person job! Of course common sense tells you not to use this in the garage on the house, but only in trees not near the house. Contact the County Extension Service and get info for some spray! Wear a mask when spraying overhead and do not spray on a windy day!
  • We have these in our Pecan trees, & our neighbor has them in their persimmon trees! Those in our Pecan tree are so high we can not reach them with a ladder, or even by putting the ladder on our pick up truck bed!! Any ideas?
  • Russell N Tammy Burdette Russell N Tammy Burdette on Apr 29, 2015
    I hate these the are everywhere in MO. Live fruit trees and last time we burned them off it damaged my tree. I don't use chemicals either. Wouldn't they just fix their bag if you ripped it open like a spider does?