need help with gypsy moths

[familytree]

hey guys and gals, recently, my uncle had passed away and i have been asked to help my aunt maintain her small farm out in dorthy new jersey. i went out there today with my pop and brother to do a bit of dead wooding and was absolutly amazed by how many gypsy moths i saw, i enclosed a pic, this was the best tree out of her 7 large white oaks that i surveyed today as far as gypsy moth population. the problem is so bad in the area that the state has been doing drive bys with a plane to sprace pestisides but that is only covering the canopy

i am doing my best to help her out but there is no money involved when i do the work for her and her funds are a bit limited due to the passing of my uncle. do you have any suggestions you folks could give me as far as care for the trees after the moths have done there work, the trees are already looking a bit haggard, i suggested paying someone to come out and spray, but what else can i do to help these beautiful trees make a good comeback?

i should also mention, she has two 5 gallon containers filled with dead gypsy moths, she picks them up from the base of the tree, i got a call from her about two weeks ago with worries about them and i told her that i would come and evaluate the situation, she held onto the dead ones at the base to show me just how bad it was, she even went as far as duct taping around the trunk so the little jerks would get held up, believe it or not, it didnt do that bad of a job

 

[BostonBull]

For free? Not too much. You dont want to prune them too hard, it will create more wounds for the tree to have to close off, which takes nutrients away from other tasks.......like gypsy moth repair. Do you know if these trees were defoliated last year?

Try to get her to spend some money on a spray for the gypsy moths, and maybe some fert to help the trees bounce back.

How defoliated are the canopies?

 

[familytree]

the canopies look pretty beat up, but still have enough green on them to last through the summer if she sprays now, i told her she might lose them if she doesnt spray, she is calling barlett? tomorrow, im not familiar with the area all too well so i dont know any reputable companys around her parts and figured barlett to be the best one to call, her neighbor owns a tree company, but they are aweful, she had brought them in for some work before and i told them to get off the property the second i saw the gaffs, thats why i am now doing all the climbing and tree work instead of trying to sub some of the stuff out, its hard enough to mow the couple acres she has, even with the tractor

i am a bit worried that the canopies are so beat up that they wont do well in many heat waves, we are in the middle of one now, its been a pretty constant 97+ here, but the trees looked okay, no excessive wilting that i could see, but the trees do look a bit thinned out

 

[Eric_E]

It looks like the cats in the pic are dead. Is that correct?

If I remember this correctly the few that are dead and hanging in an inverted V died from entomophaga. the dead ones hanging head down died from BT.

From the pic, assuming that they are dead,there was good control from the state spraying or naturally occurring/introduced pathogens.

 

[familytree]

eric, you are correct in thinking that they are dead but not all of them in that pic are dead. Thanks for the insight. I had no idea thats what the body language said. Pretty interesting. Unfortunately the cats in the canopy are still thriveing. I called my aunt today and told her to spray immediately. I will fertilize in a few weeks. What does your abreviations stand for? Ive yet to read this chapter in my ISA book. Thanks for the insight folks.

 

[Eric_E]

BT is Bacillus thuringiensis. It appears that the living ones are on thier way out.

They are getting big at this point and look to be 2nd or 3rd instar. Spraying will give minimal control at this point. If your aunt does get it treated BT would be preferred over broad spectrum materials for the environment.

The Oaks should be OK. In good health it usually takes 2 consecutive years of defoliation to kill them. I would also wait on the fert.