On Saturday, we were walking in the park and saw the discarded and torn leaves scattered on the path; young branches stripped clean of their early green. The castoff remnants revealed jagged and frayed edges — edges produced by millions of tiny sharp teeth. This can only mean one thing: gypsy moths are back.
Oh, yeah, now these hairy black varmints with red and blue dots are renamed spongy moths, but regardless of name, these munching little black worms — who, when not gobbling every green leaf in sight, swing from invisible threads attached high above in the trees — have returned with their ravenous spring appetites. It has been about 35 years since the hungry maggots were considered a problem. At that time, we were living in Rappahannock County, and there were so many immature moths — furry black caterpillars — a person could actually hear them moving from leaf to leaf as they devoured their way across the trees and through the forests.
Besides demolishing a forest in record time, these nasty little worms drop worm poo in their wake, marking patios and decks with tiny black poos. Disgusting little invaders. Most importantly, some people, like my dear husband, have an allergic reaction to the caterpillars, developing a rash that produces skin areas that resemble perforated packing plastic: tiny bubbles blooming on the skin.
Therefore, keeping these scoundrels away from the property is paramount. After doing some research on how to rid my yard — and patio furnitur.
