locust Tree

[bduston]

Help!

My 12 year old locust tree is full of web worms. They are ugly and I'm considering cutting the tree down and starting over with another tree. I'm wondering if I can save my tree and prevent the web worm infestation without spraying. My second choice is to cut it down and plant a Bartlett Pear. Will the worms spread to that tree if they have been in the area on the Locust? It's right in front of my deck and I need a medium sized moderately shady tree which looks good. Any suggestions?

Bill Duston Littleton, MA

[Treeman14]

Other than removing them by hand, spraying is the only effective means of controlling webworms. Use Bacillus thuringiensis (Bt) since it will only kill the worms and not the beneficial predators. To answer your second question, any fruit tree will be susceptible to webworms, as well as Eastern tent caterpillars.