People walking through St Helens Churchyard, Margaret Brown Gardens, and the bottom of St Amand Drive may have noticed what appear to be silkworms dangling from bushes. However, I believe these are Box Tree Moth caterpillars, an invasive species from Asia.
Unlike silkworms, which can be beneficial, Box Tree Moth caterpillars are harmful. They spread webs round plants, devour leaves, and leave plants bare and brown. I could not see a single green leaf remaining on the bushes. In severe cases, they can even kill the bush.
BBC Gardener’s World has more about them and their treatment.
!00% for identification, backstreeter. These were first seen in the UK in Kent circa 2006, have been creeping into our area for a couple of years and arrived to party in my box hedge last year. I went into full defensive mode and bought moth traps with biological lures, and sprays, but, I fear, to little avail. You may be willing to devote a considerable anount to time and money to battling these little b*****s, but my advice would be to not bother … nature will win and the box tree is a gonna. This is really sad as it’s an icon of the British Garden.
You’ll see a lot of small to medium sized white moths flying about this summer. They can look pretty, but don’t be taken in … they’re looking for a box hedge near you.
They have spread around Abingdon. Also Box Blight. Many box bushes have been killed stone dead including my box hedge.
I found a moth between sheets inside my bed last night!