Brown needles on jack pine likely due to budworm outbreak

Notice brown branches on jack pine? If you’re in the northern Lower Peninsula or some parts of the Upper Peninsula, jack pine budworm may be to blame. Budworm caterpillars feed off needles on jack pine and red pine trees, leaving trees defoliated and causing die-back among the crowns of trees. Clipped and damaged needles turn reddish brown in early July, making the damage very apparent. Over…