Kellycat....do you understand your situation, now? If you had been able to examine the tree webs, you'd find hundreds, thousands of Eastern Tent caterpillars. But those webs that you could see.....on shrubs or other lower lying location are the work of spider hatchlings. The egg sacs overwinter and hatch in the early spring. Coincidentally, the egg mass of the caterpillar has much the same story. There is nothing that needs to be done for either critter. I have sprayed the caterpillar nests with strong streams of water, just to break up the protective webbing. You'd be amazed at all of the different things that go after them, once they can get to them! Birds, frogs, lizards, squirrels, spiders, and all kinds of predatory insects.

Thank you! Yay-- not that I'm happy about aphids, but I'll take them over spider mites!

spiders are your friends.. they are predators of many problem insects.. i would hestitate to get rid of them ... they may be there because another problem pest is in high population .... where are you .. was the house vacant? .... take a deep breath .. i know you hate spiders... but dont create bigger problems ... first step i recommend.. see if spiders are a problem for your new neighbors.. if not.. then you dont need to nuke the place ... they are there for a reason .. what if they are keeping the blood sucking skeeters in check .. which would you rather have??.. i will take the spiders ... this years spike in population, for whatever reason .. may not be there next year ... and try to ID the spiders... i guess i am presuming you have plain old spideys.. and not dangerous ones.. good luck.. ken

Thanks, I looked at the cottony scale online. I need to go back and take a closer look at the tree. I do recall a couple of leaves during my heavy inspection which had a cottony material at the tip edge. I chalked it up to a left over nest of some sort, but maybe it was scale. Those leaves went into the trash bin. Also, what sort of insect is it that spins a white web/cocoon between two leaves. I know I read this somewhere, but can't remember now. I pulled a couple of these leaves off that we're stuck together. I too, originally thought that the beetles were some sort of flea beetle, but in my guide to garden pest book, they looked more like a ground beetle. Just to be sure, I will be showing it to the arborist that I called this evening. I can't take the stress and worry anymore. He comes tomorrow. I will update with his take on the matter. Ken_adrain, I posted about the main issue previously under the tree section. You were kind enough to respond there, but I am still searching for answers. This post was edited by rakin on Thu, Jul 31, 14 at 21:55