Pine Tube Moths
Characteristics:
- Eggs: Females lay eggs on needles.
- Larvae: After hatching, pale green larvae feed on the needle tips. The larvae protect themselves by spinning a soft white silk web around 5 to 20 needles to create a tube. The first generation of larvae are full grown by mid-June, while the second generation of larvae appear in mid-July.
- Pupae: After maturing, larvae pupate to over winter and emerge as adults in the spring.
- Adults: Adult moths appear in May and have a grey to tan bodies. Their forewings are reddish-orange with white oblique lines and smoky-coloured hindwings.
Identifying infestations:
- Silken needle tubes: Larvae create tubes where they feed by spinning white silken threads around 5 to 20 needles.
IPM Toolkit:
- Preventive tools:
- Follow a regular watering, fertilizing, and pruning schedule to keep your trees as healthy as possible to resist attack.
- Physical tools:
- Prune infested tips where silk tubes appear.
- Biological tools: Not applicable
- Least toxic chemical tools: Not applicable