dying emerald green arborvitae trees - Ask Extension
I planted 60 of these trees about 12 years ago , all in a line. They grew about 10" each year for the 4 years , then they seamed to grow faster. The...
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dying emerald green arborvitae trees #705361
Asked July 25, 2020, 9:42 PM EDT
I planted 60 of these trees about 12 years ago , all in a line. They grew about 10" each year for the 4 years , then they seamed to grow faster. They are about 15 ' now. 10 days ago I noticed 3 trees beside each other were turning brown from the top down 3/4 of the way down .., 1 next to it had the very top starting to turn brown, , That was on July 17'-2020 . I went on vacation on July 18 - 2020. Just got back tonight July 25 -2020. Now I have 7 trees turned brown. What do I do to try to save these trees ? ^&&* May be bag worm, What do I use to kill them, can I save the brown trees ?Can you call me on my cell<personal data hidden>
Thanks Dennis Miller
Thanks Dennis Miller
Lycoming County Pennsylvania
Expert Response
Hello and thanks for using the Ask an Expert System.
While it is difficult to be certain of what is attacking your arborvitaes, I suspect that your guess at bagworms is correct. You can read about these pest and control measures in an extension publication called Bagworms.
The brown sections of your trees are dead, and probable will not recover. Removing all the bags you can reach will be a major task, but at this time it is probably the best you can do. Insecticide application is only effective in June.
If you have additional questions you can contact the Lycoming County Master Gardener Hotline.
Lycoming County Penn State Extension Office
