City offers free kits to help Barrie residents battle moth infestation

The City of Barrie is offering free burlap kits for residents to help battle the LDD moth invasion.

LDD moths feed on tree leaves, destroying the tree's growth and preventing it from producing new leaves.

The egg masses are starting to hatch, and by the end of May, experts say the hatch will be at 90 per cent.

The City advises putting a burlap sack around the tree's trunk from June to mid-July. The caterpillars will use the sack as a resting place, so residents can remove it to prevent them from morphing into cocoons before it begins.

Here's when and where residents can pick up a free burlap kit:

Fri., May 27
City Hall, 70 Collier Street, 9 a.m. to 4 p.m.
Sat., May 28
Dorian Parker Centre, 227 Sunnidale Road, 8 a.m. to 3 p.m.
Wed., June 1
Peggy Hill Team Community Centre, 171 Mapleton Avenue, 3 p.m. to 6 p.m.
Fri., June 3
Southshore Community Centre, 205 Lakeshore Drive, 3 p.m. to  6 p.m.
Sat., June 11
Dorian Parker Centre, 227 Sunnidale Road, 8 a.m. to 3 p.m.

The City also encourages residents to tape trees to stop the tiny stage caterpillars from reaching treetops from mid-May to June.

It also suggests collecting cocoons from June to mid-July and leaving dead caterpillars on trees to help control the pest.

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Meanwhile, experts believe this year's infestation won't be as significant as last summer, between last year's decline due to the MPV virus and fungus that kills off the caterpillars.

Experts say this year could be the end of another cycle based on data suggesting the infestations have a seven to 10-year pattern.