I’ve been trying to grow blackberries for a few years now and this should be the first year I am able to harvest a few berries. Last year the squirrels ate the few that I produced. I planted quite a few more last year so it’s looking up for me this year. Last spring when my lone prime ark freedom was blooming the leaves on the plant were being devoured at an alarming rate. So much so that the plant had basically been defoliated in a matter of a week. The blossoms opened and out of desperation sprayed the plant with malathion. The malathion worked to kill the bag worms but it also nuked every flower on that plant. I was disappointed to say the least. I had to deal with the bagworms several times over the summer but repeated applications of malathion worked to get them under control. Fast forward to this year and my blackberry plants are getting destroyed again. This year I’m prepared a bit better and get some spinosad at the recommendation of a professor at the university of Arkansas. I spray and get only a day or so of delay in the murder of my plants. It’s bagworms again and it doesn’t seem to be deterred by the spinosad. I don’t want to spray the malathion because I don’t want my blooms to get nuked. My question is if I continue to use spinosad(which doesn’t seem to be harmful to the flowers) under all flowers have formed fruit will it be safe to use malathion and not nuke the fruit? Also does anyone recommend some alternative to the two aforementioned insecticides? These little suckers must be able to eat like crazy. I never find that many at any one time.
This one is easy. Bacillus Thuringiensis var Kurstaki or Btk toxic only to caterpillars.
Not to be confused with. Bti Bacillus Thuringiensis var israelensis toxic to biting flys and mosquitos. or Bacillus thuringiensis var. tenebrionis toxic to beetles. Bacillus thuringiensis var. aizawai is also toxic catapillars but also honeybees so you dont want that one.
I have been growing Ilinni Blackberries since 2003 and I don’t recall any serious insect damage to mine ever.
Boy those bag worms sure worked that one over. I see why you are concerned.
Just wondering exactly what kind of worm you are calling a bag worm.
Below is what I have always called a bag worm, and I have had those on my evergreen bushes in my landscaping and you have to take care of them quickly or they will multiply and cause some serious damage.
I have never seen them on any type of plant other than an evergreen type shrub that you might have in your landscaping though.
Is that what was eating your blackberries up so bad ?
TNHunter
From what I gather there are many types of bag moths. The one that is bugging me is a small guy with an enormous appetite.
Wow… yes that looks just like what I have seen on evergreens here, but much smaller.
Ours are usually a good inch to 1.5 inch long. I have never seen ours eating anything other than evergreen shrubs.
Good Luck at getting rid of those.
TNHunter