Question
There are evergreen bushes outside of my apartment.  I didn't realize that the creatures I was seeing were coming from them.  They are dangling from the bushes almost looking like a miniature pine cones but are soft. When they fall off the start moving along the ground like a slug.  What are they?

Answer
EJ,
I have a feeling that the plants are Arborvitae and the pests that you are seeing are Bagworm. These cateripillars feed on the leaves and also use them to build their nests. There are many control methods that can be used, but they need to be applied early. Now the only things you can do is to spray with Orthene and prune out the bags.
Good luck.
Ed Gulliksen