What's eating my plant?

Joined
30 Apr 2014
Messages
50
Reaction score
0
Location
Essex
Country
United Kingdom
Hi all,

Something keeps eating teaves from one particular type of plant. I've sprayed resolva and bug killer but have not had any joy. Also frustrating not being able to see who the culprit is!

Any help appreciated in trying to stop the rot!

Many Thanks
 

Attachments

  • IMG_20200808_093604.jpg
    IMG_20200808_093604.jpg
    246.7 KB · Views: 216
  • IMG_20200808_093540.jpg
    IMG_20200808_093540.jpg
    305.8 KB · Views: 213
  • IMG_20200808_093102.jpg
    IMG_20200808_093102.jpg
    222.7 KB · Views: 220
  • IMG_20200808_093057.jpg
    IMG_20200808_093057.jpg
    222.5 KB · Views: 211
Sponsored Links
well it appears to be an insect rather than a slug. Slugs can strip tender young leaves completely, near the ground, and you will see the shiny trails of dried slime.
https://www.rhs.org.uk/advice/common-pest-identification-guide

Have a look at the labels on your chemicals. Do they say they kill leaf miners and caterpillars? Some are intended for killing greenfly.

You can see the squiggly yellow lines on the leaf, those are leaf miner, but the bigger holes look like caterpillar (not bee). You might find caterpillar webbing on it (somewhat like spiders web, but more tangled). I think the yellow spots are a sap-sucking insect, bigger than an aphid or thrip. Is this an ornamental cherry tree?

if this is an ornamental plant (not a food plant) I'd go for a systemic insecticide that will be drawn into the sap of the plant and remain poisonous to insects for a couple of weeks.

They might be dropping onto it from a higher tree, so look above.

I find Provanto Ultimate Bug Killer very good, but it seems expensive, you hardly get a thimbleful of concentrate so have to measure it out and dilute it with great care. A small pump-up hand sprayer (maybe a litre) will be suitable. Little disposable bottles with the ready-to-use mixture are poor value unless you only have a couple of houseplants. I use Roseclear more often.

Spray in the evening when there will be no rain or hot sun before the chemical has been absorbed. You have to spray enough to get every leaf wet, preferably on both surfaces, which a mist will do. If it drips off, you have applied too much.

note the pump on top. You can get various sizes from about 1 litre up. The brass or plastic nozzle is adjustable for fine or coarse spray, or jet, which will reach further if the plant is tall.


79b4a02b264748f283b09f862b288d75beee895c_400_400.jpeg
 
Wow comprehensive response thank you. The tree is a lime tree.
The bug killer I'm using kills caterpillars, weevils, whitefly, sawfly, capsids, beetles, greenfly, blackfly.
 
Sponsored Links
try a few slug pellets after watering. If they're the culprit, you'll see slime trails and maybe dead slugs the next morning. Rain will wash them away. It takes a couple of weeks of thinly scattered pellets to clear the slugs who live near enough to walk up to your plant. They travel.

A systemic insecticide may need re-applying after 2-4 weeks. It will say how many can be used per year. In a month or so the insect season may have changed.
 

DIYnot Local

Staff member

If you need to find a tradesperson to get your job done, please try our local search below, or if you are doing it yourself you can find suppliers local to you.

Select the supplier or trade you require, enter your location to begin your search.


Are you a trade or supplier? You can create your listing free at DIYnot Local

 
Back
Top