the BEACON Newspaper, Indiana beacon6-18 | Page 23
June 2018
beaconsports
@live.com
By
Melanie
Alexander
I like to think
that I
By
approach everyday
life with
Maxine
flexibility. This
is especially
Klump
true as I explore my love of
cooking with Community
the reality of
Correspondent
cooking for one person on
most days. I enjoy the actual
[email protected]
process of cooking and do not
mind eating alone at home or
away. I do NOT enjoy eating
the same dish over and over
when the recipe itself served
4-6 people. So… most weeks
find me experimenting with
favorite recipes sized for one
or two servings. I can usually
find willing participants to
By
John
Hawley
Purdue
Extension
Educator
[email protected]
Battling the
Big Bad Bagworm
Creepy. Crawly. Annoying.
Stubborn. Hungry. These are
just a few of the words that
accurately describe bag-
worms. If you are unfamiliar
with the pest, you may be
lucky or simply unaware of
the hungry caterpillars lurking
in your trees and shrubs. If
you know them all too well,
hopefully, this article will of-
fer you a few solutions.
Evergreen bagworms, as
they are often defined around
our area, are notorious for
their insatiable appetite and
ability to critically defoliate
plants. Often found on ever-
green shrubs such as spruce
and junipers, this squirmy
devil is also known to at-
tack deciduous trees such as
maples and honey locust if
given the opportunity.
They are most active in
late May and June when their
eggs hatch from an overwin-
ter sleep. They will feed for
about six weeks and when
disturbed, they will hide in
their bag that also enlarges as
they consume more and more
plant materials. Their bag is
composed of a fine and sturdy
silk, mixed with a variety
of plant materials. They are
known to make circular dam-
age on leaves, leaving skele-
ton-like marks in abundance.
To control these bagworms,
there are a few options to
consider. First of all, if there
are only a few small trees
or shrubs infested on your
property, handpicking and
destroying the bagworms
yourself may do the trick. For
this method to work, be sure
to destroy all bags during the
fall, winter and early spring.
For those larger infestations,
chemical controls are likely
needed.
According to Dr. Cliff Sadof
with Purdue Entomology,
bagworms can be easily con-
trolled with a spray applica-
tion of spinosad (Conserve, or
Fertilome borer and bagworm
killer), or Bacillus thuringi-
ensis (Dipel). Be sure that all
label instructions are followed
closely if you decide to spray
on your own.
Many of the stronger
products recommend for
bagworm control (especially
heavy infestations) may only
be available to a commercial
THE BEACON
share in these tastings so that
I’m not consigned to eating the
same thing for five or six days.
Several weeks ago, I came
across a recipe for a blueberry
lemon quick bread that sounded
good – not too sweet, filled
with