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Unknown Pest Eating Plant
Dee Syed
Posts: 1
Hi Everyone,
First of all, I'm new to the forum, hence "Hello!". I'm a novice when it comes to gardening but still hoping to get my garden in shape for this summer and hopefully pick up a new hobby. One of my plants is growing well but it looks like something is eating it. There are no insects or bugs that I can see, therefore wondering if someone could help identify what could be causing it and how to prevent it. Apologies, but I don't know the name of the plant either (novice, as I said!). Any help would be greatly appreciated.
Kind regards,
Dee
This is what the plant looks like:
0
Posts
Vine weevils by the look of the notches. It's the adults which eat the leaves like that but the real damage is done by the grubs which eat the roots. If you google you'll see what the adults look like then you can squish them when you see them!
It's a rather unwell looking Pieris, Dee. They don't like alkaline soil and prefer a bit of shade, so it may need a different location and a feed. Healthier plants can withstand a bit of nibbling. They'll take sun as long as the soil doesn't dry out too much.
I live in west central Scotland - not where that photo is...
Hopefully that's damage on last year's leaves? It's a bit early for adult vine weevils to be about, even in a mild spring.
I'd treat the bed with Vine Weevil nematodes to tackle the grubs in the soil as soon as conditions are right http://apps.rhs.org.uk/advicesearch/profile.aspx?pid=234
Gardening in Central Norfolk on improved gritty moraine over chalk ... free-draining.