How-To Features Tree Registry Register your trees for customized advice. All species of poplars are affected by some sort of leaf-feeding caterpillar. Larva feed on the buds or the leaves causing a lacy appearance. Infestations usually aren't fatal, but several successive years of attack can weaken a tree enough to kill it.
Insecticides can be effective to treat infestations.
Leaf Beetles Leaf beetles from the species Chrysomela can cause substantial damage to poplars in urban settings. After spending the winter in the bark or other shelter, the adult beetles emerge in the spring and feed on the leaves and twigs. Females lay yellow eggs on the underside of the leaves and the larva then also feed on the leaf tissue between the veins. Insecticides can be effective, but because four or more generations of the beetles occur each year, multiple applications in a single year may be necessary. Cottony Cushion Scales and Mealybugs White, cottony masses covering leaves, stems and trunk is an indication of cottony cushion scales or mealybugs.