What's eating my brug leaves? Large holes have appeared in the leaves, assume it may be a caterpillar of some type? What can I use to make them go away? I looked on a number of leaves and did not see the culprit.
Holes in brug leaves
Pam, everything eats mine. lots of cats, have seen some tiny blue beetles. i mash the beetles. yesterday i moved a fat cat off a brug i treasure and put it on a seedling. i mash the beetles and grasshopper things. i like to see the dragon flies and lizards on my brugs and like the butterflies. i have used the raid flying insect stuff after dark a few times. those grasshopper kind of things eat them too. all critters love brugs. i think the lizards and dragon flies are finally catching up, not near as many holes as i did have.
Arlene, I'm glad someone else realizes how important the lizards are for bug control. I agree, everything eats my leaves, even the katydids. I've noticed butterflies laying eggs on the leaves so I will have to be on the lookout for the fat cats that will be eating them. The little cats are the same color as the leaves and hard to see at first.
Snails and slugs do more damage, and I didn't realize that they can climb. It really ticks me off when they get inside a flower and mess up the pollen or eat the stigma.
i get snails too, i take them off and throw them. now the snails, i keep wondering if i should collect them and find someone who wants to eat them or a school that needs them for a project! i'm not sure about slugs but i must have them somewhere. i draw the line at buds too, leaves will grow back but i want my brug flowers! i have a bunch of those blue skanks that are supposed to be endangered in florida. i'm out in the woods and i plant flowers for me and critters. Now, i don't care if other people use insecticides and stuff, and i'll kill a cat or two, but i really enjoy the hummers, butterflies, lizards, dragon flies and birds.
I have slugs real bad. is there something I can do besides put out beer? sevin on the ground? anything I might have here at the house?
I heard they won't cross copper or foil,can you make a collar around the plants?
I can try!
Well, makes me feel better to know I'm not the only one with holes. I do have slugs and grasshoppers around. Have lots of lizards, some dragonflys (so beautiful), good many butterflies. I don't want to mess up the good things, but thought I might have the ugliest brug anywhere next to all you pros, and didn't know how harmful it might be to the plant. So I gather most of you don't worry about it too much as long as the blooms keep coming.
I am worried about it on my seedlings. I've had some they got the entire leaves, and now the baby is dying. got to protect them somehow.
TiG, mine have so many holes in them after all this rain I call them "holy brugs" lol. The only caterpillars that I really hate are the big tomato hornworms. I still don't have the heart to squish them so I toss them down in the weeds at the edge of the woods.
Hey tiG (and others interested), Try crushed egg shells around the base of the plant. It will cut the slugs and they supposedly won't cross them. I did put some around my huge plant that has the holes, and since I did, the new growth hasn't shown signs of holes like earlier. At least not yet. Maybe slugs were my problem, cause I do have tons. Did find another kind of cat on there the other day. It might have been a butterfly, but I had to get him off.
My friends help themselves and put a thick layer of kitchen salt around places or plants, to protect them from any kind of snails.
Something was eating my brug leaves today, a fuzzy white cat and when I brushed my arm against it, it stung me.(I didn't mean to brush against it)