Sitka spruce weevils
The Sitka spruce weevil causes extensive damage to Sitka, White, and Engelmann spruce, Mugho pine and blue spruce. In the spring, the adults climb up to the top of the trees to feed and mate. These weevils spread by flying on warm sunny days. Their eggs are laid in small holes made in the bark of the previous year’s tree leader and the larvae will begin to feed around the stem as they eat their way downwards. This feeding causing deformity and death of the leader stem causing two or three years of height growth in about a one month of feeding. This is most notable for Christmas tree growers as the trees will have deformed or forked trunks. To help rid your trees of these weevils, choose well-drained sites, prune infected tress and use sticky tape at the base of leader stems. Systemic insecticide are available but must be applied by a certified professional.
gogreenpestcontrol.ca Ladner Tsawwassen Delta B.C. Randy Bilesky
https://www.linkedin.com/pulse/sitka-spruce-weevils-randy-bilesky?published=t
