Questions tagged [pests]

For questions about garden pests such as insects, birds and mammals.

In horticulture, the word "pests" is usually used for macroscopic animals, although smaller organisms (e.g. bacteria, fungi, viruses, nematodes) could be considered pests, as well as invasive plants (e.g. vines and parasitic plants).

Macroscopic animal pests are dominated by insects and mammals, although other arthropods, reptiles, and birds could all be pests.

All of these groups primarily contain beneficial or neutral organisms, so generally control methods should be limited and in the form of deterrents rather than chemical poisons.

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Beetle infection

Having the infestation of the beetle above in the gardening pots. The grub of the beetle is causing trouble to the young plants and the soil loses water retention due to the pupa stage which forms soil shells. Could any one recommend a way to…
Krishna
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What is this insect with a funny color pattern?

What is this insect? Does she do any harm?
Aleksandar M
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What are the little white eggs on rose leaf?

Somes weeks ago rose food /w bad things killer was sprinkled on the ground. The three roses were, just a little over a week ago, hacked back for better access to attempt to clear myrtle that had invaded the area. The white is (was) on just rose.…
CW Holeman II
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Could I have prevented an Emerald Ash Borer infestation?

Our city sent us a letter informing us that the ash tree in our parkway was infested with the Emerald Ash Borer insect. The city removed the tree a few weeks ago. Is there anything I could have done to have saved the tree? Or prevent the…
LarsTech
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What are these black spots on white splotches appearing on my tomato seedling?

Here are pictures of the infected leaves. I cut them off the plant as soon as I saw them today. Click for full size Here are close-ups of the most infected leaf: Click for full size What can I do to prevent this from happening to the rest of the…
Om Patange
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What pest is this?

I found a bunch of these pests on my grape leaf. I zoomed in a bit, but they're quite small in real life. They also seem to be found on leaves with some kind of white or gray fluff (at first glance it looked like a bunch of old spiderwebs crumpled…
chum
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What are these very small angular holes in clusters on my ground?

This spring I've noticed a bunch of holes almost everywhere on my property which is located in Doboj, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Europe. N44.73, E18.08. The holes are forming some kind of clusters, from 2 up to 10 holes. The diameter of the holes is…
False Identity
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Help identifying this bug

I recently noticed several of these bugs on one of my backyard trees. It seemed to be feeding at a wound in the bark. It appears beetle-like with a shell covering its wings. They range in size from about a quarter inch to three-quarters o an inch. I…
Kingfisher
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What's the best way to eliminate/deter rats from a garden without harming squirrels?

I have a friend who wants to plant a garden were she has moved, but she has a huge rat problem and is afraid that if she plants a garden they will be a nuisance. She is afraid of using poison or conventional traps because she also has a few families…
Bluefox
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How long is bacillus thuringiensis active?

A few weeks ago I sprayed my broccoli and bok choy plants with bacillus thuringiensis in an attempt to control caterpillar numbers. I'm pleased to see no new caterpillars (pieris rapae larvae) since then even though I have seen eggs laid on…
Graham Chiu
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Do mosquitoes breed in the water caught by succulents?

Echeveria and Agave are succulents that trap rainwater between their hydrophobic leaves. Droplets last a long time in these crevasses. Mosquito abatement requires avoiding standing water. They reproduce in water, in only a few days. To this end we…
Aaron Brick
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Help with tomato pest problem

first of all, thanks for taking time looking into my problem, it is greatly appreciated. I need help identifying and combating a new pest on my tomato plants. I'm growing in a big city (Buenos Aires, Argentina). I took photos of the suspects and of…
NoName13
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Slugs and snails eating lettuce?

I have been trying to grow lettuce and I am having some problems with what I think are slugs and snails, Something appears to be eating my lettuce and it is not growing much. I was wondering if anyone could confirm that this is the work of snails,…
user16579
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What is the larva in these nectarines?

My family's nectarine tree has been infested with these small larvae, so far I've only seen one per fruit across several dozen fruits, that seem to bore their way from the surface towards the pit and then leave a bunch of droppings near the pit.…
jxramos
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What pest is this and how do I treat it?

This pest appeared on the squash plants yesterday. What is it? How do I treat it? Zone 6 near Boston, Massachusetts.
CloneZero
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