If you have noticed small, spindle-shaped bags dangling from an arborvitae, juniper, or cedar this month, you are looking at bagworms, and mid-summer is exactly when they become impossible to miss. The bags look like bits of dried plant debris, which is why so many homeowners walk right past an infestation for weeks.
Inside each bag is a caterpillar feeding on the foliage around it. A light infestation thins out a few branches, but a heavy one can strip an entire arborvitae bare in a single season, and evergreens do not always recover the way deciduous trees do after defoliation.
Our arborists can confirm bagworm activity and time treatment for when it actually works, since spraying too late in the season does little good once bags have matured and sealed shut. Catching it now, while caterpillars are still small and feeding, makes the biggest difference.
Have you spotted anything hanging from your evergreens this summer that you couldn't quite identify?
#AtlantaTreeCare
Close-up photo of bagworm bags hanging from arborvitae or juniper foliage, or a crew member inspecting an affected shrub. Authentic job photos strongly preferred over stock images.
Canva text suggestion: "Those Bags on Your Arborvitae Aren't Debris" or "Bagworm Season Is Here"