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Poplar
Disease
Bacterial blight
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Leaf and shoot blight
Leaf blister
Leaf rust
Marssonina leaf spot
Insect
Carpenterworm
Oystershell scale
Poplar petiole gall aphids
Poplar-and-willow borer
Satin moth
Tent caterpillars
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Caption: Poplar-and-willow borer adult
Photo by: A.L. Antonelli
Poplar : Poplar-and-willow borer
(revision date: 6/29/2015)
Use Integrated Pest Management (IPM) for successful plant problem management.
Biology
The adult poplar-and-willow borer is a black and white weevil (a flightless beetle) about 3/8" long. The larvae are white, legless, and about 1/4" long at maturity. They feed by mining beneath the bark of trunk and branches. Feeding larvae expel large quantities of sawdust-like frass (excrement) through holes in the bark. Larval feeding may girdle branches, resulting in leaf wilt and eventual branch death. Severe infestations cause lumpy, swollen bark and bark scars with exposed wood. Old wood may produce large numbers of shoots. Willows are the preferred host, but the poplar-and-willow borer will also attack poplars.
Management Options
Non-Chemical Management
Borer feeding results in weakened limbs. Remove dead branches and seriously infested trees for safety reasons.
Select non-chemical management options as your first choice!
Chemical Management
IMPORTANT:
Visit Home and Garden Fact Sheets for more information on using pesticides
None recommended.
Images
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Caption: Poplar-and-willow borer adult
Photo by: A.L. Antonelli
Caption: Poplar-and-willow borer damage
Photo by: S.J. Collman