People urged to check their Christmas trees for clumps and warned to remove them immediately
All we wanted for Christmas was a stress-free decorating experience.
But before even getting to the rest of your house, putting up a tree can be challenging enough.
Not only have you got tangled lights to deal with, but also very delicate ornaments that break just by looking at them, along with somehow balancing the decorations evenly.
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You don't want the tree looking like Harvey Dent's Two Face from The Dark Knight.
It's a messy, time-consuming job that can be even worse if you buy a real tree.
And if you're one to really embrace the festive period, you've been urged to keep an eye out for Christmas tree clumps.
Taking to Facebook, one man has shared some of the warning signs with a photo of his tree.
Daniel Reed shared a picture of a huge light brown clump with the caption: “If you happen to see a walnut sized/shaped egg mass, on your Christmas tree, don’t fret, clip the branch and put it in your garden.
“These are 100-200 preying mantis eggs! We had two egg masses on our tree this year. Don’t bring them inside they will hatch and starve!”
Of course, the post sent users into a frenzy, as one person wrote: “Missed one on a tree one year..... left town for four days....returned to babies all over...took hours to get them out.”
Another said: “If I see this the whole tree is going in the garden! Taking no chances w/ bugs.”
A third commented: “I had one hatch one year after the tree had been in the house for about a week...had thousands of baby praying mantises in every branch tip! They were adorable but had to succumb to the vacuum cleaner!”
While a fourth user warned: “These mantis are actually VERY invasive. They are native to Asia and eat both bad AND good bugs. They have been seen killing humming birds. While I would never go out of my way to kill a mantis, I wouldn't recommend saving them. They honestly do more harm than good.”
The Trusted Pest Management told people to shake their real Christmas trees outside before placing them inside their homes to avoid a bug infestation.
That way, you don’t have to spend the holidays with any creepy crawlies lingering around.
The Trusted Pest Management also warned people not to use bug spray as most are flammable, which could lead to fatal accidents.
Instead, call a pest control professional right away.
Additional words by Charisa Bossinakis
Anish Vij