If You See This on Your Plants and Trees, Remove Immediately

Bagworms are caterpillars that make homes using twigs and silk. If you see bags hanging from your plants, they might be bagworms, causing harm by eating leaves and adding weight to branches. You can remove them manually, use insecticides with Bacillus thuringiensis (Bt), or invite birds and wasps to control them. If the problem persists, consult a pest control professional.

If you notice wooden sticks like growth hanging from your plants and trees, it’s time to take action. These bags might be home to bagworms, and you’ll want to get rid of them ASAP!

Bagworms are caterpillars of the Psychidae moth family that earn their name with the “bag” or twigs that they carry with them. It’s actually a mobile home that they make by weaving together silk with leaves, twigs, bark, and even lichen, and it helps them camouflage, too.

The bag keeps on becoming larger as the caterpillar grows until turns into a moth and flies away.

There are nearly 1350 species of bagworms, but the most common ones you’ll come across are Common Bagworm (Psyche casta), Paulownia Bagworm (Eumeta variegata), and Evergreen Bagworm (Thyridopteryx ephemeraeformis).

Bagworms feast on evergreen varieties like cedars, firs, pines, spruces, and arborvitae. They have munching mouths and are heavy feeders, causing defoliation.

The primary concern is their appetite, as a large group of these is enough to strip shrubs and trees of their leaves and needles. Such behavior hinders photosynthesis and leads to stunted growth.

That’s not all; the bags that they carry woven with twigs and debris often add unwanted weight to leaves and stems, increasing the risk of breakage, especially in windy weather. So if you see these on your plants and trees, remove them immediately.

These will