Tent Caterpillars

The tent caterpillars are busy in the alder trees down by the river. We usually leave these nests alone and let the creatures live out their lives in the natural setting. I watch for the nests in the garden and strive to control them before they decimate the fruit trees. Their favorites are the plums and the apricots, but they will nest in the apple and pear trees also. They can be voracious eaters and strip every leaf off a tree.

Seattle.gov is a good site to learn more about the pests,

While the creatures are unpleasant, they are not harmful to people. Natural predators include many garden birds, which eat the caterpillars. Other predators are wasps and ground beetles. Homeowners who see infestations on their property should watch the number of tents forming and monitor the leaf damage. Individual tents can be removed by pruning in the early morning and evening, when the temperature is cool and caterpillars are inside them (a pole pruner is useful for high branches). Put pruned nests in a bucket of soapy water or seal them in a plastic bag and crush it. Do not remove large branches or perform excessive pruning as a means of caterpillar control – you may do more damage to the tree by pruning than the caterpillars would do by eating the leaves.

At the farm this year, it is a mild tent caterpillar year, there are just a few nests forming in the foliage along the river and they seem to be smaller webs than many years. I only had a couple of small nests that I soaped early on in the spring where the pests had gotten into the fruit trees in the garden.