Western Tent Worms

[Toepopper]

As I was in the process of watering my fruit trees yesterday I noticed that the underside of several leaves were covered with banded brown worms about an inch long. I finished watering the trees and the rest of the garden and when I came back to look at these worms they had already eaten the leaves they were on and were moving down the tree branch towards new leaves. At this pace they could devour the entire tree in an hour. Upon closer inspection I noticed very small larvae on other leaves that had just surfaced and then some half grown worms also. I mixed a few drops of Safers Soap in one quart of water and poured this mixture into a spray bottle and hosed down the worms and the entire tree. Within minutes the worms began to drop off of the tree and no further damage has occured. I inspect all fruit trees daily for signs of these western tent worms and will take immediate action if any more are located. The Safers Soap works great and is as effective as any toxic chemical sprays but without the possibility of fruit contamination by nasty chemicals.