Sophora secundiflora 'Silver Peso' - caterpillars?

[Melt in the Sun]

I'm reading conflicting reports of this fuzzy variety being more resistant to the caterpillars that plague this plant - anybody grow it? I think I remember seeing it at Greg's place last time I was there. I'm not interested in growing it unless it's fairly resistant...left two fairly large (12' or so) standard green ones at the old house that just never looked good.

[mcvansoest]

I grew two silver peso ones at my old place, tried to transplant one but did not keep it alive. I had some caterpillar attacks on it, but it seemed the caterpillars liked the Tecoma stans planted close to it much more. So I did not feel the caterpillar feeding on them was too bad, but it was certainly not zero. One year it was monarch caterpillars and them I just let have their fill.

The times it got some of the moth related caterpillars some BT caterpillar killer spraying took care of it.

I have two regular ones right now at the new place still at the very small bush stage (one may not make it - I have been bad at watering my front yard) that during the last Fall's caterpillar period that took out most of the leaves on my neighbor's large Tecoma stans - literally within about a week it went from fully leaved out to like a stick tree had no caterpillars at all in it. The Tecoma stans bush in back yard got mildly eaten.

[Melt in the Sun]

Thanks! Sounds like I will probably pass - nothing I tried was ever able to discourage them. Lots of cool trees out there!