Battle of the Bugs
Well folks it’s that time of the year again, this hot humid
weather has resulted in one of our most annoying pests coming into the radar
again. If you’ve ever had a picnic outside and sat on the grass, worked in the
garden or just took a hike through the woods, then no doubt you are familiar
with the chigger. Chiggers can cause some of the most unrelenting and annoying
pain and itching, which seems like the worst that is humanly possible. Chiggers are the larval form of several
species of mites. The mite larva is the only one that causes any irritation to
humans in the form of chigger or chigger like bites. They are commonly found feeding on wild and
domestic species, including snakes, turtles, birds, rodents and domestic pets
like dogs and cats.
The mite larva crawl around until given the opportunity to
attach themselves to a suitable host. They are common to overgrown areas and
areas that are shaded and humid areas near stream banks, under trees or in
berry thickets. However there are several myths about chiggers that are not
true. Even before writing this article I was certain that they burrowed into
the skin of their host, but that simply is not true. Turns out, once the
chigger is attached to a hair follicle, it uses its specialized mouthparts to
inject their host with saliva. In their saliva there are chemicals that
breakdown flesh so that the chigger can then ingest the liquefied tissue. They
will feed for three or four days, then detach and eventually become mature
adults. The area that turns red on the chigger bite and itches something
terrible is caused by an allergic reaction to the saliva of the chigger.
There are several ways to protect yourself from chiggers.
One way to protect yourself is to avoid going into areas that may put you at
risk of picking up a chigger. This may mean avoiding walking through unmown
fields, or hiking only on cleared trails that doesn’t have much brush that
you’ll be in physical contact with.
Second, you should create a chigger barrier. Wear long sleeves and long
pants when frequenting overgrown areas with a lot of brush. Also tuck your pant
cuffs into your boots or socks. Also clothing with tightly woven fibers will
help to keep chiggers off of you.
You can also apply an insect repellent, those containing
DEET or picaradin are common and easy to use. Showering right after being
outdoors also helps lessen the chance of getting a chigger bite. This will only
help to prevent chiggers that are not yet attached from doing so. Remember, while chiggers are most common in
brushy areas, they can be found on lawns, under trees, parks camps and
recreational areas.
Bagworms are back!
No doubt everyone has seen the destructive nature of the
bagworm in action, they can take the prettiest tree or shrub and turn it into a
skeleton compared to what it once was.
They are hard to miss with their one and a half inch to two-inch long
spindle shaped bags that can be seen hanging from the twigs of a wide variety
of trees. While noticeable, the bags made by the bagworm are often mistaken for
pinecones or other plant structures.
While the female moth of this species cannot fly, nature
found a way to disperse bagworms over vast areas. This is done in the same
fashion of many spider species. The tiny bagworm larvae spin a silk thread that
catches the wind and allows the larva to float on the wind. This act is called
ballooning. Eggs are laid by the female in the bags that served as cocoons for
last years females. The eggs sit dormant through the winter and hatch out
during the month of May and then their onslaught begins on your precious shrubs
and trees.
If only one or two shrubs are bothered by bagworms, then the
bags that the worms reside in can simply be picked off and destroyed. Also if
that is not an option then of course you can apply a insecticide containing Carbaryl
(Sevin), Bifenthrin or Permethrin. The best time to apply insecticides for the
control of bagworms is while the larva
are still small and less than ½ inch long. Many times though bagworms are not
diagnosed until the host plant has bee damaged.
It is important to note that the bagworm is not the same
thing as an eastern tent caterpillar. Bagworms have a tendency to like conifer
trees but can be found on hardwoods and other deciduous trees and shrubs as
well. Eastern tent caterpillars hatch in the early spring, right around the
time that the leaves start to come out on the trees. Also as mentioned before
the bagworm can be noticed much later in the year, somewhere around the month
of may.
Millions of Mites
Many times in the yard or garden, plants sometimes just stop
looking healthy and stop growing so well with no outward signs of disease. Many
times you would look at the plant, inspect it but see no outward clue in
particular as to what caused the un-thriftiness. Your first instinct may tell you that this
was caused by a disease, but would you have ever thought that it could be a
tiny mite? At this time of year, the twospotted spider mite is in its prime,
loving this hot weather and the lush growth of your ornamental plants. This
tiny pest can be more easily diagnosed if you take a white piece of paper, hold
it under a branch of the affected plant and then shake that branch. Any mites
that may be on that branch would then be jarred loose and will be much more
noticeable against the white background.
There are over 1,200 species of mite and there are four that
seem to be the biggest bother here in Kentucky for gardeners. While the three
other species of mite do better in the cooler months of fall and spring, the
twospotted spider mite is completely different because it prefers the hot days
of summer. As a result of this, around this time of year, their population
explodes. So plants infested with just a few mites this time of year, can
quickly become an appealing temporary home for potentially thousands of mites.
To control mites, regular inspection of plants is needed and a malathion
containing product should be applied to ornamental plants. As always, please contact the Powell County
Extension Office at 663-6404 with any questions regarding pesticide use or
insect control.
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