UPDATED: Free Burlap Available for Homeowners for Spongy Moth Protection

UPDATE: As of June 7, 2024, free burlap is no longer available. The available supply has been taken.  Burlap is available for purchase from hardware and fabric stores.  Visit the spongy moth website for additional information about how to protect your trees from this pest.

Original Release below:

The City of Madison residents can obtain free burlap to wrap around trees on your property to protect against spongy moth caterpillars.

Where to Get Free Burlap

City of Madison residents can get free burlap to protect your trees from two locations. 

Burlap will be available at these locations while supplies last, and residents should bring their own cutting implement, such as heavy-duty scissors or a razor knife.

The first location is the City of Madison Engineering Division operations facility at 1600 Emil Street. You can cut burlap for your trees from the available rolls between the hours at 8am and 4pm Monday to Friday.

The second location is Streets Division drop-off site located at 4602 Sycamore Avenue.  Burlap will be available at the shed where residents stop to have their residency or taxpayer status checked upon entry into the drop-off area.  The burlap will be available during normal drop-off site hours.

How to Use Burlap Bands to Protect Your Trees

The Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources has an excellent short video that shows you the exact steps on how to use burlap to protect your trees from the spongy moth caterpillar.

Watch the DNR video by following this link.

Step by Step Instructions for Using Burlap Bands on Your Tree

The below instructions are a text summary of the Wisconsin DNR video linked to above.  As shown in the video, this process may be best completed by two people.

How to Apply the Burlap Band

• Wrap a 20-inch wide (or so) band of burlap completely around the trunk of your tree at around chest height.
• Tie the burlap band to the tree.  Use rope or twine works best.  Position the rope at the center of the band.
• Fold the top 6 inches of the burlap band down so it flops toward the string around the middle of the band.  This creates a trap where caterpillars crawling up from the ground cannot pass.

What to Do Once You Have the Burlap Band on Your Tree

Every afternoon, check the burlap band for spongy moth caterpillars.   This is a daily task you must complete.

Scrape any caterpillars you find stuck to the burlap into a jar of soapy water to drown them, and then discard them in the trash.

When To Remove Burlap Bands

Burlap bands are effective while spongy moths are still in the caterpillar stage.

According to UW-Madison Extension, by mid-to-late July the caterpillars emerge as moths.

Remove the bands in August as they will no longer be effective.  Caterpillars will enter a different stage of their development by this time.

And in the fall, remember to watch for spongy moth egg masses and destroy the ones you find.

Additional Details

More information about the ongoing response to the City of Madison response to spongy moths can be found at www.cityofmadison.com/SpongyMoth.