Check Your Pennsylvania Christmas Tree For A Pinecone Shaped Mass

Christmas is right around the corner, and that means decorating is in full swing in homes across the state. If you prefer a live tree to an artificial one, you’ve either got your tree or you’re planning a visit to your local Christmas tree farm soon. Either way, you definitely want to give your Pennsylvania Christmas tree a thorough check to make sure it’s not hiding a praying mantis egg sac (which looks something like a pine cone). Here’s what you need to know to protect your tree and your home.

Nothing quite compares to breathing in the scent of a fresh Christmas tree, shimmering in ornaments and lights, in your home. However, your beautiful tree might also be harboring some unwanted guests: soon-to-be hatched praying mantises.

Flickr/Discover Lehigh Valley PA

Fraser fir trees are particularly popular with praying mantises, with the females commonly laying their eggs in the trees. The female can lay as many as 400 eggs at a time, usually in the fall.

Flickr/Kristine Paulus

If the sack has secured to your tree and it’s indoors, the praying mantises will warm up, mistaking the warmth for their typical hatch time of the spring or the summer. That means there’s a pretty good chance they’ll hatch early.

Flickr/the great 8

Praying mantises that hatch in your home will die of starvation unless you take action quickly. (Most usually die during the winter months.)

Flickr/Melissa

First, you must know what to look for. A praying mantis sac is typically the size of a walnut, although it may remind you of a pinecone. Look over your entire tree, going from branch to branch to see if it has any sacs.

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If you find sacs, don’t worry. Ideally, you’ll inspect the tree before bringing it indoors. Either way, cut the branch containing the sac off of the tree.

Flickr/Ted Eytan

Take the sac and carefully place it in a nearby evergreen tree, where it can stay warm and the praying mantises can hatch when spring rolls around.

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What are the chances of you finding a praying mantis sac in your Christmas tree? Slim. That’s because most Christmas tree farms use sprays to keep the praying mantis and other insects away from the trees.

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While your chance of finding a praying mantis sac is only one in 100,000, according to some experts, you still want to check your tree and know what to look for.

Flickr/Tom Brandt

Have you ever found a praying mantis sac on your Pennsylvania Christmas tree? What did you do when you found it? Let us know in the comments! If you still need a Christmas tree this season, head over to Pioneer Evergreen Farms, which sells live traditional trees and trees in a variety of vibrant colors.