Posted by thomas rushton on August 5, 2007

Q: Hello, Today I removed (6) orange dogs from my meyer lemon tree here in ocala. I saw a butterfly yesterday.

How can I prevent these from infesting and eating the leaves on my tree?

Thanks very much.

TOM

Habitat: suburban/yard

State: Florida

Habitat: suburban/yard

A: I'm glad to hear you didn't automatically spray your tree - hand picking is definitely nontoxic. My guess is that your removal of the caterpillars is both the best and simplest way to handle this problem. Since you live in Florida, I believe the Giant Swallowtails may have a rather expanded breeding period so you may get some additional eggs/caterpillars but unless your tree is much too large, just keeping an eye out for leaf damage should help you find the insects. Although it's upsetting to find leaves that have been munched on, if your tree is healthy and not stressed, it can handle this quite well. Be sure to keep your tree fertilized (don't over-fertilize) and watered properly and it should be just fine if a few caterpillars get past you. In removal of the caterpillars, you'll be most likely to find and remove the larger ones, but keep in mind that the smaller ones are going to do less damage anyway. I don't think you can prevent these caterpillars from being on your tree (unless you spray a lot) but just a general check every few days should keep this problem to a bare minimum. Best of luck with your lemon tree and thanks for asking.

John Wiessinger ( August 6, 2007)