Something is eating my leaves

[dongeorgio]

Something is devouring the leaves on my canistel, lychee and black sapote trees.  Any suggestions on what I can do to stop this scourge?

[Guanabanus]

The culprit is probably Sri Lankan weevil, which is powdery white colored. Put a tarp or sheet under the tree, then, just before sunrise, vigorously shake the branches, then smash the beetles that fall on the tarp.

[dongeorgio]

Is there a way to do this that does not require me to wake up prior to sunrise?

[johnb51]

Why do you suppose that the only tree I have that the Sri Lankan weevils really like is the Fl Hass avocado?  The leaves look like Swiss cheese!  They don't particularly like my other 3 avocado trees or even the lychee trees.  Do you think this particular tree will always be plagued by these insects?

[Rollin ya]

Smother the pests with a solution of 1 part alcohol 3 parts water. Works every time for me.

[johnb51]

Smother the pests with a solution of 1 part alcohol 3 parts water. Works every time for me.

Do you spray this on them, or just exactly how?

[Rollin ya]

Smother the pests with a solution of 1 part alcohol 3 parts water. Works every time for me.

Do you spray this on them, or just exactly how?

How'd (rollin) ya know I used spray? yep just spray it on there real good, just be makin' sure it aint be getn down to them roots.

[Cookie Monster]

Canistel falls victim to cuban may beetle this time of year. You probably have both cuban may beetle and sri lankan weevil. Grass removal works well to get rid of cuban may beetle (which feed on the grass roots when in larval stage).

[bsbullie]

The culprit is probably Sri Lankan weevil, which is powdery white colored. Put a tarp or sheet under the tree, then, just before sunrise, vigorously shake the branches, then smash the beetles that fall on the tarp.

This will be mostly a useless effort.  The guys can fly.  Also, the adult stage is just the tip of the iceberg.  If you don't control the larval stage you will be battling a battling a losing effort.  Not only will they keep reproducing at an alarming rate but they will, or may, be eating and damaging the trees roots.  Hence the problem...

I highlighted "or may" as there is no proven research that the larvae are on the host plant, it sure seems best to treat the plants being affected.  I have said it before, and will say it again (while being bashed/tormented all the while), chemical control is almost a must.  Most effective are commercial strength Imidacloprid or Dinotefuran.  You could spray the product however soil drenching is the way to go (or soil drench AND spray of you feel the need).

[kgknight]

Cuban may bettle goes to town on my lychee and black sapote, they are only on the leaves at night. I'd go out there at night just to verify what's eating your leaves then go from there.  I use sven when it gets so bad that there's almost no leaves left, works fine.

[dongeorgio]

Black Sapote



Black Sapote Pic 2



Canistel

[dongeorgio]

Lychee

[Cookie Monster]

black sap and lychee appear to have sri lankan weevil damage. canistel appears to have cuban may beetle damage. Cuban may beetle has a special fondness for sapoticaceous trees and some cultivars of persimmon and is much more of a ravenous eater. But fortunately they are only present 2 times per year and can be controlled by eliminating your grass.

[dongeorgio]

Jeff,
   When you say 'eliminating your grass', to what extent do you mean?  Are you talking getting rid of all of the grass up to the drip line or beyond that?  Also, How do you suggest I eliminate it? 

[johnb51]

The culprit is probably Sri Lankan weevil, which is powdery white colored. Put a tarp or sheet under the tree, then, just before sunrise, vigorously shake the branches, then smash the beetles that fall on the tarp.

This will be mostly a useless effort.  The guys can fly.  Also, the adult stage is just the tip of the iceberg.  If you don't control the larval stage you will be battling a battling a losing effort.  Not only will they keep reproducing at an alarming rate but they will, or may, be eating and damaging the trees roots.  Hence the problem...

I highlighted "or may" as there is no proven research that the larvae are on the host plant, it sure seems best to treat the plants being affected.  I have said it before, and will say it again (while being bashed/tormented all the while), chemical control is almost a must.  Most effective are commercial strength Imidacloprid or Dinotefuran.  You could spray the product however soil drenching is the way to go (or soil drench AND spray of you feel the need).

So the larvae are not necessarily found in the soil or at the roots of the tree on which you find the weevils eating the leaves?  They could be coming from elsewhere, correct?

[bsbullie]

The culprit is probably Sri Lankan weevil, which is powdery white colored. Put a tarp or sheet under the tree, then, just before sunrise, vigorously shake the branches, then smash the beetles that fall on the tarp.

This will be mostly a useless effort.  The guys can fly.  Also, the adult stage is just the tip of the iceberg.  If you don't control the larval stage you will be battling a battling a losing effort.  Not only will they keep reproducing at an alarming rate but they will, or may, be eating and damaging the trees roots.  Hence the problem...

I highlighted "or may" as there is no proven research that the larvae are on the host plant, it sure seems best to treat the plants being affected.  I have said it before, and will say it again (while being bashed/tormented all the while), chemical control is almost a must.  Most effective are commercial strength Imidacloprid or Dinotefuran.  You could spray the product however soil drenching is the way to go (or soil drench AND spray of you feel the need).

So the larvae are not necessarily found in the soil or at the roots of the tree on which you find the weevils eating the leaves?  They could be coming from elsewhere, correct?

Unfortunately there is no proven research to know for sure.  This is why if I have a tree that is being attached on the leaves, I usually drench to make sure if they are attacking the roots (I have found that some trees that I have had that have gotten seriously attacked have trouble with their growth and new flushes...they are slower and can be deformed mostly in size and strength...I find that after drenching it seems to help MOST of the time).  This is also why some believe if your leaves are getting attacked, to treat the entire yard.  I know this was a discussion I was getting tarnished for but this is part of the reasoning.

[Cookie Monster]

I mulched over my entire backyard in about 1 foot of mulch. After about a year the cuban may beetle population dropped down to about 5% of what it was when I had grass.

If you like chemicals, you could alternately apply a grub killer purchased from Home Cheapo or Lows.

If you dig up a section of grass, you'll find giant cuban may beetle grubs dining on grass roots. They look really grody but would probably be good fish bait.

Jeff,
   When you say 'eliminating your grass', to what extent do you mean?  Are you talking getting rid of all of the grass up to the drip line or beyond that?  Also, How do you suggest I eliminate it?

[Tropicalgrower89]

I'm using a bug zapper for the Cuban may beetle. I've also noticed dead white flies on the electric grid of the zapper, so it helps with that too I guess.