Chewing Pests

The are many chewing insect pests, so without seeing the organism itself its very hard to say which may have done the damage. We recommend you examine the plant for beetles and caterpillars, and if you find something please send us a photo of it and we’ll be happy to look again. Examine both the upper and lower surfaces of the leaves, and the stems too, at various times of day and in the evening because different insects feed at different times. It may also be that the pest has moved on and won’t continue the damage. If you do not see continuous damage, there’s nothing to be done. For caterpillar control, products that contain Bacilus thurengiensis or Bt are very effective and least toxic – you can get this at most garden centers, but there’s no need for it if caterpillars are not found on the plant. Most beetles, grasshoppers, and other similar flying insects usually don’t cause great harm or concern unless there are high numbers of them. If that were to occur, we recommend picking off as many as possible by hand and dropping them in a bucket of soapy water to kill them before disposing of them. You can also ask your local garden center for an appropriate product to be applied after hand-picking.