I have a boring insect problem that has basically killed an established lilac tree within 1 year. Today I noticed new holes in an ornamental cherry with sap seeping out, also there is an ornamental crab apple that is losing leaves and has holes. My larch tree is infested also. All the trees are established, likely 15-20 years old. Is there one type of borer that will attack all four types of trees and what can I use to kill it. I have put tanglefoot around the trunks, but what can I do to get the eggs and kill the larvae before they kill my trees?
No, the holes are small, and have dust. I think it indicates a borer. They are in a line around the tree. I have seen a wood pecker around, but not enough to make this many holes in the tree.
I had a borer here that would make holes and leave a ring of sawdust around the stem it attacked. It seemed to ringbark the branches of smallish shrubs and trees. It attacked Crepe myrtle, lemon tree, lilac, and several other things. I used to remove the infected area and made sure it was disposed of so it could not spread. I have not seen it in recent years so maybe I have finaly got rid of it. If anyone knows what this might be I too would be very interested. By the way I used to spray fly spray into the holes. Also we do not have birds here that would do this. Liz
