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Plant Pests

Aphid
Borers
Lacebug
Mealybugs
Mites
Pod Gall Midge
Scale Insects
Snails
Thrips
Weevils
Whiteflies
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Aphid
Description: Aphids are small soft-bodied insects that tend to cluster on leaves or branch tips. They can be pink, pale green, yellow, black or other colors. Some species are covered with white fluffy wax. Because female aphids can produce young without asexually, populations can increase rapidly. Winged stages may occur, which disperse to other plants. aphids usually over-winter as eggs.
Damage: Aphids damage plants by sucking sap from them. This may result in curling of leaves and stunting of growth. In severe infestations, branches may die. Because they injest more sap than they can digest, they often excrete a sticky sugan substance called honeydew that drips onto objects underneath. Sooty mold fungus may grow on the honeydew, resulting in an unattractive blackish coating on the plant that reduces photosynthesis. Ants are often attracted to and feed uon the honeydew. In addition to the direct effects of feeding, aphids may transmit plant viruses that can injure plants.
Management: Aphids have many natural biological control agents that help keep them under control. These include lady bird beetles, lacewings and parasitic wasps, among others. Conserve these natural enemies by avoiding the application of non-selective applications of insecticides, where possible.
Aphids are easily controlled with applications of insecticidal soap or horticultural oil. These have a minimal effect on beneficial insects.A dormant oil spray can be used to destroy over-wintering eggs. A number of other insecticides, such as neem, pyrethrins, acephate, diazinon and malathion also control aphids.
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Borers
Description: Borers are larvae of beetles or moths that burrow into the wood of trees and shrubs. The tunnels interrupt the flow of water and nutrients through the conducting tissue. The larvae develop and pupate in their tunnels. Adult insects then leave the plant through emergence holes that may be visible on trunks or branches. Plants may ooze sap mixed with sawdust through holes in their bark.
Damage: Attack by borers causes sparse foliage and low plant vigor. When the burrowing of borers results in girdling of branches or the trunk, branches or the entire plant may die.
Management: Plants under stress are more susceptible to borer attack because healthy plants are often able to defend themselves with pitch or sap. Borers are attracted to weakened plants. The best control is to keep plants healthy by providing adequate water and fertilizer. Painting or wrapping the trunks of young trees may reduce sunburn damage and borer attack. Insecticides can be applied to the bark of the trunk and branches to prevent entry of borers. However, insecticides are ineffective against borers once they are inside the tree.
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Lacebug
Description: Lacebugs are small insects with transparent lacy wings. The immature lacebugs are smaller, wingless and spiny in appearance. Lacebug feeding is accompanied by dark specks of excrement on the undersides of leaves. Lacebugs are usually most active in summer.
Damage: Lacebugs feed by sucking sap from plants. The feeding creates stippled or speckled spots on leaves that appear bleached because of loss of chlorophyll. The entire leaf may become bleached. Small brown or black tarlike spots of excrement are present on damaged leaves.
Management: If lacebugs have been a problem in the past, eggs and young nymphs can be destroyed by spraying horticultural oil early in the year. Lacebugs can be controlled with applications or insecticidal soap or other insecticides, such as acephate. The spray should be applied to the undersides of leaves where the insects congregate. Repeat application may be required.
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Mealybugs
Description: Mealybugs are insects related to aphids and scale that are covered with a white cottony or waxy coating. Egg sacs are also covered by a cottony coating. Mealybugs tend to feed in protected places, such as on roots, at the base of leaves and in crevices and are sometimes difficult to detect.
Damage: Mealybugs feed on plants by sucking sap from them. They excrete a sugary fluid called honeydew on which sooty mold fungus may grow. Heavy infestations of mealybugs may cause plant stunting or may kill branches.
Management: Over-wintering mealybugs can be controlled on trees and shrubs with an application of an oil spray. During the growing season plants can be treated with insecticidal soap or an insecticide such as acephate, malathion or diazinon.
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Mites
Description: Spider mites are small, almost microscopic relatives of spiders that damage plants by sucking sap from them. They can be detected by the presence of fine webbing that they make on the undersides of leaves and small green, red, black or yellow specks that can be seen moving around when an infested leaf is tapped over a piece of paper
Damage: The feeding of spider mites produces small stipple-like yellow spots on leaves. In severe cases, the entire leaf may become bleached or bronze-colored. Leaves may turn brown and fall off. Feeding on new leaves may cause them to curl and become distorted.
Management: Spider mites are favored by warm, dry, dusty conditions. An occasional misting or overhead watering may reduce mite numbers. Ladybird beetles, predatory mites and other beneficial organisms help to control spider mites. Spider mites can be controlled with an application of insecticidal soap, horticultural oil or other insecticides or miticides.
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Pod Gall Midge
Description: Pod gall midges are tiny flies whose larvae feed on leaves of honeylocust trees. The small whitish larvae cause leaflets to develop into podlike galls, in which the larvae can be found. Adult flies emerge from the galls.
Damage: The podlike galls turn brown and fall from the tree. The result can be early defoliation of trees in midsummer. Repeated attack may cause branches to die.
Management: Prune dead branches out of trees. Trees can be treated in spring and again in summer with an insecticide, such as carbaryl.
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Scale Insects
Description: Scale insects appear as shell-like or waxy bumps on stems or leaves. They are insects related to aphids, mealybugs and whiteflies that become attached to plants and suck sap from them. Eggs are laid under the shell, and when they hatch, the young scale insects crawl away to a new location, where they become attached to the plant.
Damage: Though light infestations of scale may have little effect on a plant, severe infestations may cause considerable damage to plants. Branches may be killed and the entire plant may die.
Management: Beneficial insects, such as parasitic wasps and lacewings help to control scale insects. Because mature scale insects are protected by their waxy shell, they are difficult to control with insecticides, and insecticides may harm beneficial insects. However, an application of dormant oil during the winter may smother scale. Also, immature crawler scales can be killed with the application of horticultural oil or insecticide in spring before they develop their shells.
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Snails
Description: Snails are mollusks and, like other mollusks, require a moist environment when they are active. They are usually active at night or during cool moist periods during the day. Eggs are laid in masses the soil.
Damage: Snails and slugs are among the most destructive garden pests. The most damaging snail in the landscape is the European brown garden snail. In addition to living at soil level, it will climb up structures and the trunks of trees and shrubs to feed on foliage. Snails chew irregular ragged holes in leaves, scar fruits and strip green bark from stems. Entire leaves may be consumed. Where they travel, they leave slime trails the may be visible on foliage.
Management: Control snails with a molluscicide bait. It is most effective when applied to moist soil. Care must be taken to prevent the bait from being consumed by pest and wildlife. In small areas, copper strips can be used as barriers to exclude snails.
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Thrips
Description: Thrips are tiny elongated insects that can barely be seen on the undersides of leaves. They may hide in flowers or other protected places where they are difficult to detect. Adult thrips have wings and may be brown or black in color. Immature thrips are wingless and light in color.
Damage: Thrips feed by rasping the tissue from the surface of plant tissue and sucking up plant sap. This results in silver-colored, bleached tissue lacking in chlorophyll, accompanied by black varnishlike spots of excrement. In addition, feeding by thrips can cause twisting and distortion of leaves and flowers.
Management: A number of beneficial insects, such as lacewings feed on immature thrips and help to keep them under control. They can also be controlled by applying insecticidal soap, and insecticides, such as rotenone, pyrethrum, malathion, diazinon and acephate.
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Weevils
Description: Weevils are beetles with snouts that feed on a wide variety of plants. The larvae are white grubs that live in the soil and feed on roots. Some weevils are mainly active at night and are rarely seen but can be detected by their feeding damage.
Damage: Feeding damage by weevils may appear as scalloped notches chewed at the margins of leaves. In more severe cases, leaves may have many ragged holes or may be sheared off. The feeding by larvae on roots may result in the slow decline of plants that is often mistaken for fungal root disease or other problems. Plants may suddenly wilt and die if grubs girdle the base of the trunk.
Management: Parasitic nematodes are often used to control larvae in the soil. Foliage can be treated with an insecticide, such as acephate, and this can also be used as a soil drench around the base of the plant to control grubs.
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Whiteflies
Description: Whiteflies tiny white moth-like insects that can be seen feeding on the undersides of leaves and flying from the leaves when they are disturbed. The immature form resembles an oval translucent scale insect and lacks wings. Whiteflies are relatives of aphids, mealybugs and scale and, like them feed by sucking sap from plants.
Damage: Feeding by whiteflies causes stunting of plants and curling and mottling of leaves. They may also transmit plant viruses. They excrete a sticky sugar substance called honeydew on which may grow sooty mold fungus.
Management: Beneficial insects, such as parasitic wasps, help to control whiteflies. They can be controlled by applying insecticidal soap, horticultural oil or an insecticide, such as pyrethrum, neem oil, malathion or acephate.
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