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Caterpillar eating bay trees

hennessyhouse123hennessyhouse123 Posts: 3
in Problem solving
Hi, both of my bay trees (10 years old, planted in the ground) compmetely died away this year. All leaves gradually turned brown and fell off. I cut them both right back, not sure whether they'd recover. New growth has started to come through on both but its all being completely eaten away. I couldn't see at first what was doing this, someone suggested vine weevil - but today i found some leaves curled and stuck together, in top of new shoots, white silky stuff inside and tiny thin pale green caterpillars, with a kind of pale yellow head. Any idea what these are? They've completely destroyed my trees. Best trearment? Ive taken off the worst affected leaves and any caterpillars 
I can see. Thank you.  of my 

Posts

  • CeresCeres Posts: 2,698
    Welcome to the forum.
    Are you able to post a photo of any of the curled leaves with or without the caterpillars? It would help with identification. 
    The only thing that I have come across that curls bay leaves is the bay sucker and that is not a caterpillar. https://www.britishbugs.org.uk/homoptera/Psylloidea/Lauritrioza_alacris.html You are bound to get these sooner or later and the cure is to pick off the infected leaves. A tedious task but necessary.

  • hennessyhouse123hennessyhouse123 Posts: 3
    Thank you. I've attached some more photos, it's hard as I cut them right back so there are only 4 or 5 new shoots, no other growth. All the new shoots are eaten away. The caterpillars seem to be in very very top of the new shoot leaves. Leaves seem to curl around and stick together. If you pry them open there's solky white stuff and then a caterpillar inside. Thank you. 
  • bertrand-mabelbertrand-mabel Posts: 2,697
    Could be one of the tortx moth caterpillars.

  • hennessyhouse123hennessyhouse123 Posts: 3
    bertrand-mabel said:
    Could be one of the tortx moth caterpillars.

    Thanks. This sounds exactly like what I have! I've got box moth too on some small box hedging, so it seems my garden is a haven for moths that cause damage! 
  • DovefromaboveDovefromabove Posts: 88,147
    Hopefully you’ve got some bats about 🦇 

    Gardening in Central Norfolk on improved gritty moraine over chalk ... free-draining.





  • bédébédé Posts: 3,095
    Search and squash.  Easier for a bay than a box.
     location: Surrey Hills, England, ex-woodland acidic sand.
    "Have nothing in your garden that you don't know to be useful, or believe to be beautiful."
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