Survival Homestead

From chicagotribune.com

Residents in McHenry, Kane, Lake and DuPage Counties—regions where the infestation forced a state quarantine—have been especially hard hit.

“We’ve been getting call after call about gypsy moths,” said Doris Taylor, plant clinic manager at The Morton Arboretum in Lisle. They’ve come from Woodridge, Downers Grove, Lisle, Westchester, Bartlett and Lombard, she said.

In 2000, Lake County became the first Illinois county to be quarantined by the state Agriculture Department to try to slow the spread of the leaf-eating insect larvae. DuPage, McHenry and Cook were added in 2007.

A quarantine is an attempt to stop the movement of moth eggs. It means that local tree and shrub growers must spray their plants and have them inspected before receiving a certificate to allow them to sell and ship their goods outside the county. Grills, campers and lumber also should be inspected.

When the gypsy moth’s numbers reach outbreak proportions, its presence is something approaching a horror film.

This entry was posted on Tuesday, June 24th, 2008 at 11:19 am and is filed under Insects. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.