Like tiny pieces of bright blue sky dropped into your garden, forget-me-nots are one of the few true-blue flowers available to gardeners.These plants are steeped in history and symbolism, and are eas
06.06.2023 - 15:55 / gardenerspath.com / Sylvia Dekker
How to Identify and Control Leaf Miners Coleoptera, Diptera, Hymenoptera, and LepidopteraHave you ever wondered what was causing those meandering, silvery paths in the leaves of so many different plants, both out in nature and in your garden?
The answer: leaf miner larvae. They’re exactly what their name suggests, tiny immature insects that tunnel between the leaf layers, eating their way through the juicy green photosynthetic bits.
If you notice damage to your plants, should you be worried? And if you are concerned, how do you deal with the pests?
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Give yourself some peace of mind and check out everything you need to know about these hungry little larvae below, from identification to available control methods.
Here’s what we’ll talk about:
What Are Leaf Miners?Leaf miners are not just one species of pest. Rather, this common name covers a variety of insect larvae that tunnel inside plant leaves, feasting on the green parts as they go.
Sawflies (Hymenoptera), flies (Diptera), beetles (Coleoptera) and even some moths (Lepidoptera) all have leaf mining larval stages.
These insects will damage trees, shrubs, herbaceous perennials, and annuals, including vegetables such as beets, spinach, and chard.
Feeding dots made by Dipteran adults can closely resemble the unsightly stippling caused by other insects and mites. Along with the larval exit holes, these can become entry points for disease pathogens.
The mining damage can be divided into two types: tunnels or blotches. Often, blotches are a result of multiple larvae mining in the same leaf.
When dealing with edible greens such as spinach, the thought of eating insect larvae
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