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European Sawfly
European Sawfly
What is eating the needles off my Mugho Pine?
What you are probably seeing on your pine trees are the larvae stage of European Sawfly. The eggs hatch into caterpillars in late April and feed on the previous year's needles. Doing a search on Pine Sawfly will provide numerous pictures to verify the diagnosis.
If you go out now, you may be able to see the small eggs on the needles. They are oval shaped and are usually laid in a row of five or six eggs along the length of the needle. Control can be achieved before the larvae become active by spraying the tree with a dormant oil treatment. This product can be purchased at most hardware stores or garden centers. The one caution is that you want to spray before the eggs hatch and the spray should be applied when the air temperature is above freezing.
Once they hatch, most commercially available insect control products will control sawfly larvae. Read the label to make sure sawfly is listed under the section of pests that are controlled by the product.