Bagworms are the destructive insects for arborvitaes, roses, cedars, junipers, pines, spruces, elms, oaks, poplars, apples, willows, and some other evergreen plants. They can defoliate and kill your plants if you don’t take the right actions.
A few months ago, my friend noticed bag-shaped insects hanging on his arborvitae plant but he didn’t take it seriously. After a few weeks, the insects hatched out and attacked other healthy plants.
Want to know what happened then? He called an insect-killing company. Finally, the company helped the plant to get rid of bagworms after lots of sweating but he had to pay a lot of money.
Sounds sad, right? But you will be happy to know, the best insecticide can help better to get rid of bagworms from trees. But the question; what’s the best insecticide for bagworms?
The organic or inorganic type of insecticide that contains spinosad, pyrethrins, malathion, Sevin, permethrin, or Bacillus Thuringiensis as the active ingredient. Also, the best bagworms insecticide comes with a perfect concentration.
For your convenience, Here I listed and reviewed the best insecticide for bagworms that will help you to control bagworms effectively.
In a Rush? Here is the overall best insecticide for bagworm infestation that you may buy right now-
Best Insecticide for Bagworms-Comparisons
| Bagworm Insecticides | Active Ingredient | Type | Price |
|---|---|---|---|
| Monterey LG6135 Insect Spray | Spinosad | Organic | |
| Sevin Ready To Use Bug Killer | Zeta-cypermethrin | Inorganic | |
| 36.8% Permethrin Insecticide | Permethrin | Inorganic | |
| Bonide (BND255) - Insecticide | Spinosad | Organic | |
| Spectracide HG-30900 Insect Killer | Malathion | Inorganic | |
| Monterey LG 6338 Insecticide | Bacillus Thuringiensis | Biological | |
| Ortho MAX Insect Spray | Malathion | Inorganic | |
| Southern Ag 10401 Concentrate | Pyrethrin | Inorganic | |
| Martin's Multi-Purpose Insecticide | Permethrin | Inorganic | |
| Summit Pest Control | Bacillus Thuringiensis | Biological |
Best Insecticide for Bagworms-Reviews
1.Monterey LG6135 Garden Insect Spray
As the bagworms killer, it contains 0.5% spinosad. You will be happy to know, spinosad is the mixture of spinosyn A and spinosyn B that are derived organically from Saccharopolyspora spinosa soil bacteria. Spinosad is a highly toxic insect killer but has low toxicity to humans and animals.
This spinosad containing insecticide can be applied to kill bagworms on roses, knockout roses, arborvitaes, evergreens, Japanese maples, junipers, blue spruce trees, and even the wall of your house. Also, it can be used to get rid of other garden insects.
It is a fast-acting contact insecticide that only kills the insects if they come in contact with the insecticide solution. So, you need to spray both the upper and lower surfaces of the leaves of your affected plants for better results.
Mix 4 tablespoons of this concentrate insecticide solution into a gallon of water and spray the entire foliage of your plant to kill the bagworm insects.
Good news; it is also available in Ready to Spray.Ready to Spray insecticide comes with a hose-end sprayer. Attach the hose and spray the insecticide on your plants.
2.Sevin Ready To Use Bug Killer
It contains zeta-cypermethrin as an active ingredient. zeta-cypermethrin is a quick-acting neurotoxin that can kill most of the garden insects quickly.
The manufacturer provides 2 versions of this insecticide. One insecticide can kill 100 plus insects and another can kill 500+ insects. Good news; you can pick any of those to kill bagworms. Both are effective to get rid of bagworms.
Sevin insecticide is derived from chemical products but you can spray the insecticide on fruits, flowers, vegetables, and ornamentals without the risk of damage.
This insecticide comes with the Ready to Spray(RTS) and Ready to Use(RTU) formula and you may know Ready to Spray insecticide container has a hose-end sprayer and Ready to Use insecticide has a hand trigger.
To spray the insecticide-
Add a hose with end hose sprayer for RTS solution or pull the trigger of RTU solution and spray on the foliage of the plants.
3.36.8% Permethrin SFR Multi Use Pest Control Insecticide
The active ingredient of this insecticide is Permethrin. Permethrin is a powerful insecticide that is also used as medicine. As a medicine, it is called Nix among the users. A lighter concentration of permethrin can kill bagworms on the plants but this insecticide has 36.8% Permethrin.
Also, you can apply this insecticide on vegetables, fruits, flowers, and ornamentals to kill other insecticides including aphids, Japanese beetles, caterpillars, fleas, wasp, bugs, flies, mosquitoes, and scorpions.
It is a contact insecticide and comes with a concentration formula. You need to apply the insecticide thoroughly to your plants that the insects come in contact with the solution.
To apply this insecticide-
Mix 3-4 tablespoons of insecticide into a gallon of water, shake the solution, and spray on the foliage until the leaves wet completely.
4.Bonide (BND255) – Captain Jack’s Dead Bug Brew Insecticide
As an organic insect killer, it has spinosad and you know spinosad is an organic insect killer that is derived from soil bacteria. It is the most effective to control bagworms, beetles, caterpillars, borers, moth, spider mites, loopers, thrips, leaf miners, and other garden insects.
It is also a contact insecticide. That means it only works when the insects come in contact with the spinosad solution.
This is available in Ready to Spray solution and comes in a container with a hose-end sprayer.
To treat the bagworms affected plants, simply connect a garden hose with a hose-end sprayer, and start spraying on the plants until the upper and lower surface of leaves wet completely.
5.Spectracide HG-30900 Malathion Insect Killer
As the active ingredient, it contains 50% malathion and you know malathion is an organophosphate insecticide that is mostly used to kill garden insects including bagworms. It is an FDA-approved chemical for agriculture.
It is a contact insecticide. The insecticide works on the nervous system of insects and kills them when they come in contact with the solution.
It can be applied to control bagworms and other garden and residential pests on garden sand, landscape. Even you can spray it to kill bagworms on walls and houses.
Pour 1½ to 2 tablespoons concentrate solution into a gallon of water. Mix properly and spray on the foliage to control bagworms.
6.Monterey LG 6338 Bacillus Thuringiensis (B.t.) Insecticide
It contains Bacillus Thuringiensis as the active ingredient of this insecticide. Bacillus Thuringiensis is the soil bacteria. It produces a protein that is toxic to insects but completely safe for humans and animals.
As you saw, it has bio compounds as an insect killer. That’s why it is called biological insecticide.
The benefit of the biological insecticide is, the bacteria can take place in the soil and sometimes inside the plants as a systemic insecticide and provide 360-degree protection to the plants against insects.
Besides bagworms, it also can be applied to vegetables, fruits, and ornamentals plants to kill armyworms, blackworms, cankerworms, and other caterpillars.
It is available both concentrate and Ready to Use formula. Ready to Use insecticide has 9.83% Bacillus Thuringiensis and concentrate insecticide has 98.35% Bacillus Thuringiensis.
To apply Ready to Use insecticide-
Shake well, pull the trigger and spray on the leaves of your plants.
And to spray concentrate solution-
Mix 2 tablespoons per gallon of water and spray the solution to kill bagworms on the plants.
7.Ortho MAX Malathion Insect Spray Concentrate
This insecticide contains malathion for killing insects on vegetables, flowers, fruits, ornamentals, and houseplants and you know malathion is the powerful insecticide from the organophosphate group. It is an FDA certified chemical for agriculture to treat bugs and garden insects.
It is also a contact insecticide that can only kill the insects if they touch or come in contact with the insecticide solution.
It comes in a concentrated formula. You need to dilute the solution before treating the plant.
Mix 1 tablespoon into a gallon of water and spray on the upper and lower surface of the leaves of the plants to get rid of bagworms bugs.
When to apply insecticide on plants to control Bagworms?
It is important to know when you should spray insecticide to kill the bagworms. Because it is hard to kill if the larvae of the bagworms become more than a half-inch. So, you must know the right time to apply insecticide on plants.
Generally, the bagworms start to hatch from May to June. So, you need to apply insecticide just before the hatching of the insects. According to the expert, spring or early summer is the best time to apply insecticide on plants to get rid of bagworms.
How to Get Rid of Bagworms?
There are lots of ways to get rid of bagworms. Here are the most effective bagworm treatment that you can follow-
Method 1: Handpicking
Handpicking is the most effective traditional method of killing insects. Before hatching the bagworms. Collect the bags by hand.
Fill a bucket with water and mix 3-4 tablespoons of liquid soap. Mix the solution to make insecticidal soap solution and pour the bagworm bags into the solution and let them kill.
Remember; handpicking will be time-consuming if the infestation is heavy.
Method 2: Biological Control
If you want to get bagworms free plants biologically, spray Bacillus Thuringiensis containing insecticide. Bacillus Thuringiensis is super effective to kill bagworms quickly. Also, birds can help you to get rid of bagworms biologically.
Method 3: Chemical Control
Chemically you can get bagworms free insects quickly. You can apply organic or inorganic chemicals on your plants.
If you want to get rid of bagworms organically, spray spinosad, or pyrethrin containing insecticide. Also some inorganic chemicals such as seven, malathion, permethrin can help you to control bagworms on the gardens.
Method 4: Homemade Solution
Some home remedies are also effective to kill bagworms. Neem oil, insecticidal soap, and the traditional garlic spray can work against bagworms and others garden insects. Here is the A/B test between neem oil and insecticidal soap. You can check and choose the best one for your plant.
How to Prevent Bagworms?
You know; prevention is better than cure. So, if you want to prevent bagworm infestation, apply the insecticide as a preventive spray in spring or summer.
Conclusion
Bagworms are the most destructive bags that can defoliate your plants. So, help your plant to get rid of the bagworms, and to do that you need the best insecticide for bagworms.
I hope this article helped you to get a good and effective insecticide for bagworms. Now treat your plant by spraying the insecticide and get insect-free healthy plants.
