Tag: Tree care

The 17-year cicadas are BACK!

Some folks are protecting their young trees with fine mesh netting. That’s because cicadas can damage branches between about 1/4 and 1/2-inch thick, by cutting the bark to lay their eggs. Larger trees won’t suffer much, as long as they are watered well during the next few months. Young trees will also do better if you make sure they get the water they need to be in general good health now and for at least a couple months after the cicadas are gone. That’s when the scars left on branches dry out and can cause damage.

If you want to learn more about protecting young trees, check out the Morton Arboretum page about the cicada emergence or this Openlands post on LinkedIn.

These red-eyed insects don’t bite, and they aren’t very good flyers. They have been living underground for 17 years, and they will only live for about four to six more weeks.

In the forest preserves, there can be up to 1.5 million cicadas per acre! You can learn more about cicadas in this excellent Cook County Forest Preserves article.

We hope you are appreciating this amazing show of nature. We won’t see these little guys and gals again until 2041!