Looking for recommendations for treating bag worms now (summer; zone 6) and in the future. We pulled a bunch off my beloved blue spruce and cedars today. It’s not the first time we’ve dealt with them, but the first time in several years. How do I prevent round 3!? Note: non-chemical options preferred.
To limit the bagworm population, you need to get as many of them as possible, before their eggs hatch. They do one generation per year, and overwinter as eggs in the mother moths' bags, so remove them starting in late fall (you can get them all through winter and early spring, but fall will be the least cold time to do it.) Crushing and/or burning the egg cases can also help as they can still hatch when they're off the tree. To improve natural predation, make your yard friendly for finches (offer nyjer seed), woodpeckers (offer suet, especially peanut flavor), paper wasps, and parasitoid wasps (both of those like american asters and flowers in the carrot and dill family. Anything with flat clusters of many tiny flowers should work well.)
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