Weeping birch larvae and aphids?

I've attached pictures of the damage and the pests causing it in my weeping birch. This happens every year to varying degrees of severity. This year is the worst ever.

Most of the leaves are all eaten and the tree looks dreadful.

There were tiny larvae (see pictures) rolled-up under the leaves, but now what looks like aphids. So having put on my white lab coat, I deduced that the larvae were aphid larvae.

There are a few ladybugs on the tree which I understand eat the aphids, but my tree can't wait for that. It looks very bad. I've been told that BTK would kill the larvae, but it may be too late for that. I understand insecticidal soap (and malathion, etc) kills the aphids but I don't want to kill the ladybugs and bees... (that just seems so, you know, wrong... but I will if I have to, to save the tree.)

The tree is a feature tree in my front yard. Help!

 

European birches and other cold climate trees often get aphids and other sucking pests here. The heavy chewing damage from the caterpillars is your problem in this instance.

 

Hello,

You can refer www.kootenaycovers.com. You can find protecting bags for the tree ,it prevent you from worms & beetle

 

consider removing the tree and replacing with a relatively problem free tree of a similiar habit, IE weeping caragana.

 

Thanks all! Great info and advice.

I have -- for now anyway -- won the battle against the aphids and the tree has rebuilt most of the lost leaves. I did it by spraying it with water repeatedly, which as most people know gets rid of the aphids eventually. Since this is an annual problem though, I will consider the suggestions made here for protection or replacement.

Thanks again!