| Table: Diagnosis and Control of Eastern pine shoot borer | ||
| Pest Identification | Host Plants | Damage Symptoms |
| Eastern pine shoot borer (19) Eucosma gloriola family Tortricidae |
Austrian, jack, red, Scots,Swiss mountain and white pines, Douglas fir | While larvae are feeding, shoots start to flag. Smaller infested shoots look reddish. Old damaged shoots are filled with frass and bend 6 to 8 inches from the tip. An oval exit hole is diagnostic. Trees that are repeatedly infested become bushy. |
| Monitoring | Control Options | Pesticides |
|
Look for damage from old infestations in the fall and winter (bent, brown shoots with an oval exit hole). Look for exit holes during June and July, when larvae bore out of the shoot and fall to the ground to pupate. Break open damaged shoots to be sure a shoot borer is causing the damage. |
Physical: Prune out any borer infested shoots. Chemical: Spray with bifenthrin in May to control larvae before they bore into shoots. |
bifenthrin |
| Description and Life History | ||
|
Description:
Eastern pine shoot borer adults are Tortricid moths with a wingspan of 14-15mm. Moths are coppery
red with two shining gray bands on the forewings. Larvae can reach 13mm in length. They are
off-white with dark heads. Life history: Adults begin to fly in May and eggs are laid and hatch later in the month. Larvae bore into the shoot where they remain until mid-July when they leave to pupate in the soil. Overwintering: The eastern pine shoot borer overwinters as a pupa in the soil. | ||
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