MADISON - Aerial spraying to slow the spread of gypsy moth will begin Tuesday at five sites in Green County, weather permitting, the Department of Agriculture, Trade and Consumer Protection announced Friday.
DATCP uses an insecticide applied from low-flying airplanes against the invasive moth that feeds on the leaves of trees and bushes. The caterpillar is most active after it emerges in May and June and can strip an entire neighborhood or forest of leaves when their populations are high, according to DATCP.
Fortunately, the caterpillars usually move on after stripping the leaves and even a severely defoliated tree can recover during the next growing season, according to the University of Wisconsin-Extension.
Airplanes will apply an insecticide, Foray 48B, which is approved for use in certified organic food production or processing by the Organic Material Review Institute, according to DATCP.
The insecticide contains Bacillus thuringienis which is found in soil bacterium and is poisonous to gypsy moth caterpillars when consumed. Btk breaks down in sunlight within a few days, according to DATCP.
Btk also does not appear to pose any significant harm to the health of humans, pet or birds that consume the gypsy moth caterpillar, according to information supplied by Purdue University.
When sprayed, Btk has an 80 percent effective success rate against the caterpillars. When applied a second time within two weeks, Btk has a 99 percent effective kill rate, according to the university.
DATCP plans to reapply Btk within three to seven days of the initial application.
Spraying can begin at sunrise and continue until the targeted area is covered. Calm winds, high humidity and no precipitation are ideal spraying conditions.
The planes spray at treetop level and are loud.
The five Green County spraying sites are located:
• On both sides of County O (134 acres) at the Dane-Green county line;
• At County E and Yarwood Road (143 acres);
• South of County NN at Kempfer Lane (107 acres);
• North of Albany at County E and Dunphy Road (204 acres);
• Both sides of Biggs Rd. north of CTH C (122 acres).
DATCP advises people with allergies to remain indoors or leave the area until the spraying is completed. The planes may frighten pets or livestock and owners may want to keep a close eye on them.
The gypsy moth caterpillar has regularly spaced red dots along its back, black dots closer to its head, and sprouts hair-like tufts from its abdomen.
Native to Europe, Asian and North Africa, the gypsy moth was brought to the U.S. in 1869 in a misguided attempt to bred silkworms. It is a hardy species that lacks natural predators and eats a variety of vegetation, according to the UW-Extension.
After being introduced in Massachusetts, it has spread steadily westward and was first observed in Wisconsin in the late 1980s, and has become well entrenched in the eastern two-thirds of the state.
DATCP and the Department of Natural Resources have combated the moth in forests and urban areas for about 20 years, said Rick Hummell, a DATCP spokesman.
"We know we'll never eradicate them but our goal is to "slow the spread," which is the name of a national program that Wisconsin and 10 other states are involved in," Hummell said.
Spray updates will be available on a toll-free hot line, 1-800-642-6684; press 1.
DATCP uses an insecticide applied from low-flying airplanes against the invasive moth that feeds on the leaves of trees and bushes. The caterpillar is most active after it emerges in May and June and can strip an entire neighborhood or forest of leaves when their populations are high, according to DATCP.
Fortunately, the caterpillars usually move on after stripping the leaves and even a severely defoliated tree can recover during the next growing season, according to the University of Wisconsin-Extension.
Airplanes will apply an insecticide, Foray 48B, which is approved for use in certified organic food production or processing by the Organic Material Review Institute, according to DATCP.
The insecticide contains Bacillus thuringienis which is found in soil bacterium and is poisonous to gypsy moth caterpillars when consumed. Btk breaks down in sunlight within a few days, according to DATCP.
Btk also does not appear to pose any significant harm to the health of humans, pet or birds that consume the gypsy moth caterpillar, according to information supplied by Purdue University.
When sprayed, Btk has an 80 percent effective success rate against the caterpillars. When applied a second time within two weeks, Btk has a 99 percent effective kill rate, according to the university.
DATCP plans to reapply Btk within three to seven days of the initial application.
Spraying can begin at sunrise and continue until the targeted area is covered. Calm winds, high humidity and no precipitation are ideal spraying conditions.
The planes spray at treetop level and are loud.
The five Green County spraying sites are located:
• On both sides of County O (134 acres) at the Dane-Green county line;
• At County E and Yarwood Road (143 acres);
• South of County NN at Kempfer Lane (107 acres);
• North of Albany at County E and Dunphy Road (204 acres);
• Both sides of Biggs Rd. north of CTH C (122 acres).
DATCP advises people with allergies to remain indoors or leave the area until the spraying is completed. The planes may frighten pets or livestock and owners may want to keep a close eye on them.
The gypsy moth caterpillar has regularly spaced red dots along its back, black dots closer to its head, and sprouts hair-like tufts from its abdomen.
Native to Europe, Asian and North Africa, the gypsy moth was brought to the U.S. in 1869 in a misguided attempt to bred silkworms. It is a hardy species that lacks natural predators and eats a variety of vegetation, according to the UW-Extension.
After being introduced in Massachusetts, it has spread steadily westward and was first observed in Wisconsin in the late 1980s, and has become well entrenched in the eastern two-thirds of the state.
DATCP and the Department of Natural Resources have combated the moth in forests and urban areas for about 20 years, said Rick Hummell, a DATCP spokesman.
"We know we'll never eradicate them but our goal is to "slow the spread," which is the name of a national program that Wisconsin and 10 other states are involved in," Hummell said.
Spray updates will be available on a toll-free hot line, 1-800-642-6684; press 1.