As cicada-geddon looms, tulle becomes vital tool in keeping trees, plants alive

LISLE, Ill. (WBBM NEWSRADIO) — Immature periodical cicadas have been crawling their way out of the ground at the Morton Arboretum for about 10 days, so experts at the site in Lisle are encouraging homeowners to start protecting vulnerable trees now.

Plant health care leader Stephanie Adams said tulle — a lightweight netting used to make tutus — can be wrapped around young trees with branches that are less than two inches in diameter. The measure should be enough to protect the trees from the female cicada.

“She has a specialized organ called an ovipositor,” Adams said. “She will cut into the branch of trees and shrubs to lay her eggs inside the bark.”

Physical barriers work, said Plant Clinic Manager Spencer Campbell, though he added that it’s important to use a breathable material, one with holes small enough to keep the insects out while letting water and sunlight in.

“If you use the wrong material, you can cause serious and lasting impacts on trees, so we’re looking for fine, mesh netting,” Campbell said. “Bird netting, insect netting no bigger than one-quarter inch across.”

Horticulture crews at the 1,700-acre site in Lisle have a lot of work ahead, Adams said.

“We specialize in rare and endangered plants,” Adams said. “We don’t know if they’re hosts or not. I think the latest list I heard was about 500 different plants.”

While the average lifecycle of a periodical cicada above ground is two to three weeks, Adams said it’s best to keep the netting up for four to six weeks to protect against those that arrive early and late.

The 17-year cicadas, or Brood 13, have begun arriving about two weeks early this time around. Campbell said they arrived on May 29 in 2007. He expects them to come on May 15 this year.

Another brood of cicadas — 13-year cicadas known as Brood 19 — have been emerging across southern and central Illinois, with the potential for hybridization in areas of overlap near Springfield or Peoria.

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