Podocarpus Problems

We think you have two different things going on here. First it’s not uncommon for podocarpus to have a pubescence or light “fuzziness” on the lower leaves — it is how it grows. The missing leaves are something else. We can’t see any insects but they could have eaten and are now gone. We don’t see any frass (poop) and we don’t see any leaves partially eaten that would give us an indication of what kind of insect it can be. Sometimes sawflies eat podocarpus and look like caterpillars of moths. Unfortunately when organic pesticides lie dipel are used foe control thye don’t work because saw flies don’t turn into moths — they turn into flies. If you can be patient and take a image and send it back to us we might be able make a more accurate diagnosis.