Q&A – What can we do to get rid of the worms in our walnuts and
save our tree?

Question:
We have a Walnut Tree and there are worms in the nuts. What can we do to get rid of the worms and save our huge tree? It is over 50 years old and we don't want to lose it. 

Answer: 
The worms are the black walnut curculio. The female insect boroughs into a developing walnut and lays an egg. The larva feeds on the nut. The walnut tree prematurely drops the nuts – called June drop – and the larva crawls into the ground and pupates. The adult emerges and the cycle begins again. Unfortunately, there are not many options for a homeowner with a large tree. The best solution is to air blast insecticide into the tree, but the air blast sprayer is a large and expensive piece of equipment usually only used by commercial producers. 

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Related Resources:
Protecting Backyard Walnut Trees from Walnut Huskfly 
Home Nut Tree Plan