Gypsy Moth

Month	Life Stage	Management Options
January February March April	Egg masses present late August through early May	Search for and destroy egg masses by scraping them into a container with a putty knife.  They can be buried in six inches of soil, burned, or soaked in soapy water for 48 hours.   Homeowner assistance with egg mass destruction can remove about 25% of the egg masses if all within arm's reach of the ground are found.  Each egg mass destroyed could eliminate several hundred caterpillars.
May	Eggs hatch early May	Apply insecticides (Bt) if needed (most effective when caterpillars are small).
June July	Caterpillars present early May through mid-July; caterpillars pupate mid-July	Place hiding flaps, remove and destroy caterpillars (see above).
August	Adult moths present late July through August
September October November December	Egg masses present late August through early May	Remove hiding flaps.  Search for and report egg masses found to the Forestry Division.  Do not scrape egg masses until after January 1 to encourage egg parasitism.  Forestry Division conducts annual egg mass survey October through December.