Lets Talk cicadas damage

Here is one study that says kaolin clay NOT effective in repelling cicadas .
https://meridian.allenpress.com/jes/article-abstract/55/2/210/431051/Evaluation-of-Organically-Acceptable-Methods-to?redirectedFrom=fulltext

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@Hillbillyhort Thanks for that tip. I guess need to wrap the scion stem but not the leaves that grow out of it? I"ve got some organza bags that would work until the scions grow more than a couple inches.

Anybody know how long the egg laying is a threat? Like a month? Will try to figure when the threat starts here.

Yah I think about a month .
I find it amusing that Orkin recommends aluminum foil.
Hah.

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If you hear them ‘singing’ then there is a threat. :slight_smile:

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Wonder if cicadas would penetrate Doc Farwells Grafting Compound- just occured to me that may save the day. What do you think?

Never used it . But maybe ?

This study of 10 essentials oils shows that Lavendar oil is effective at repelling female lantern flys. Lantern flys and periodic cicada are in the same order of Hemiptera and while not proven on 17-year locust I will be trying to find out.

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Here is a useful link.
It has a list by state and county of brood X
And a chart of when they lay eggs ,etc .

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Good website.

But, no, this is not the year we’ll be seriously affected in S. Central Kentucky.

Happily.

(I didn’t think it was…but memory not as good as it once was.)

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Well the sites indicate North Alabama will not see a problem until 2024 with Brood 19 (XIX). My trees will be 4 years old then. Looks like a massive pruning to make them so I can cover with shade cloth and ride out the storm.

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These maps…
I have seen several maps that do not seem to agree,.
Also maps with little dots in odd places , not shown on others.
( local micro colony ‘s ? )
So time will tell if they are coming to a orchard near you…?

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Thank you- looks like the horde stays on the western side of Chesapeake Bay and does not reach me. Excellent news!

Well, like I said above . Some of this information may not tell the whole story. Inaccurate records possibly. ? But a good guess .

Send me your address and I can ship you a few boxes full from the western side so you won’t miss the fun.

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Yep, I remember XIX from last time (central Middle TN). Insane. I am very worried about my pawpaws, which, even at maturity, have lots of pencil-caliper branches. At the moment all i can think of is Surround.

Given how it is hard to put down Surround correctly (in particular the need to hit the bottoms of the branches) I would not put too much into this negative result… but I could have a different opinion in a few months!

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Peach trees;
on my peaches, wood is either smaller than 1/4in (fruiting wood) or much larger.
Or most small wood damaged will be done fruiting and pruned off next spring?
I wonder if they wood lay eggs in green tender shoots, next years fruit wood?

Since they are terrible flyers I am wondering if aluminum foil wrapped around the trunks would help. It seems they crawl up the trees and this would make it a lot harder.
From some research I found the cicada wings are too heavy to make them good flyers and if we could slow down the progression up the fruit trees and force them elsewhere. This and a lot of ducks and chickens to eat all they can.

They are flyers… they just look really bad at it. From the last invasion I don’t remember the adults crawling up trees to lay eggs, I only remember the nymphs crawling up, and they fly to the tall trees after molting.

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Brood XIV in Kentucky in 1991…females by the dozens pierced the bark of young apple trees and layed their eggs. Long term problems proved to be less than I expected…all trees survived…despite some having 20 or more cicadas deposit their eggs in the main trunk of the young trees. All but one of those trees are still alive…and have apples set on them this year.

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