Bold , upbeat , summery , and even delicious , sunflower are a works that just about everyone recognizes and seems to love .
unluckily , pesterer love them too !
Not to worry , we ’ve fuck off everything you necessitate to know about who might visit your sunnies for a nibble , including what they seem like , and how you may look at with them .
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Here ’s what we ’ll cover :
How to Identify and Control Sunflower Pests
When to Look for What
The tilt of pests that like to nibble onHelianthuscan be a little daunting , but if we break this up into groups of which insects to watch out for during the different flora ontogeny stages , it becomes a lot simpler to understand and plan for .
Seedlings attract cutworms , wireworm , and sunflower beetles .
During the vegetative state , which is when the industrial plant is arise those tall stems and freehanded leaves , keep an eye out for sunflower mallet , thistle caterpillars , and stem weevil .
And at long last , during flowering and come growth , watch for seed and headway clipping weevil , maggots , helianthus midges , sunflower moth , and lygus germ .
Of course , aphids can be a problem at any time .
Keep reading to learn more about each of these pest and how to check them .
Aphids
Like many other plants , Helianthusattracts a mixture of aphid types , including the melon vine , blab , and foliage wave plum aphid .
Regardless of the case , aphid are little louse that will wet-nurse on leave , young stems , and blossom petals . They also secrete honeydew , which ant and painted lady butterflies wish to tip on , and which can developsooty mould .
Bonide Insecticidal Soap
Insecticidal soaps , such as this one from Bonide that’savailable at Arbico Organics , can be effective against aphid and are safe for pollinators if utilise correctly .
Cutworms
There are several species of cutworms that find new helianthus seedling delectable . In fact , consider farmers to plant a border ofHelianthusaround garden or field to attract the cutworms away from other crop .
leafage harm looks like lowly transparent surgical incision chewed by young larvae , notch , and wilting . But cutworms get their name from their drug abuse of clipping the flora off at the soil line , a very criminative symptom .
Most cutworms feed at nighttime and veil in the soil a few centimetre from the industrial plant . To find them , gently grind the soil around the plant and appear for fat , soft , coil brown or gray larvae .
Preventative options include weed mastery , as weed protection and feed cutworm before your plants are up . In the fall , crop up the territory to expose the larva and pupae to athirst bird . Handpick the larvae at night after watering or a rainfall , orlet your chickens do the workfor you .
Cutworms do it to live in the dope , so leave a three - foot - wide nude soil strip in between your lawn and garden . This makes it harder for the larva to get to your flora .
make a homemade roadblock around each seedling at planting time . Cut the bottom out of a milk carton and push it two inch into the soil to border the seedling .
you may alsospread a layer of diatomaceous eartharound the base of each seedling as a calamitous barrier .
Perm - Guard Crawling Insect Control
Try Perm - Guard Crawling Insect Control , uncommitted at Arbico Organics .
good nematode worm , especiallySteinernema carpocapsae , usable at Arbico Organics , will attack the larvae in the ground and are good for everyone involved , including the bees !
Monterey Bt Liquid
Alternatively , apply aBacillus thuringiensisproduct such as Monterey Bt Liquid , useable at Arbico Organics . This is another pollinator safe and effective option .
Read our complete templet to cutworm control here .
Lygus Bugs
Lygus bug ( Lygusspp . ) come in tone of green to red-faced - dark-brown and have a distinctive light - colored triangle at the fender base of operations .
Nymphs are light-green and look like aphid , but are much faster moving and do n’t have the aphid ’s characteristic “ tailpipes ” ( cornicles ) .
Lygus bugs feed by inject enzymes that digest plant tissue into the plant and suck the nutrient out . feed on come have brown spots , also have a go at it as kernel brown spot , and a bitter taste . It can be a serious job for Fannie Merritt Farmer and for home gardeners if you be after to harvest seeds for snack .
genus Lygus bugs can be heavy to control because they move apace so are hard to get with a nebuliser . If you choose to employ an insecticide in the case of a severe plague , apply early in the first light when the hemipteran are less participating . Use an insecticidal soap as you would for aphid .
Sunflower Beetles
Zygogramma exclamationisare easy to recognize . They are orotund beetles with a red - brown brain and emollient - colored wings cover in reddish - chocolate-brown longitudinal stripes .
The larvae are almost precious , with fat pale green to yellow bowling - bowling pin - influence bodies . Adult feeding creates shotholes in the leaves , and larvae eat transparent windows into the farewell .
Unlike the pestilence discuss above , sunflower beetles are specific toHelianthus . They are the most damaging defoliator of sunflower in North America .
Normally , beetle numbers are keep in check bybeneficial insectsin nature . Different type of ladybugs , such as the thirteen - spotted and convergent mixture , feed the eggs .
Lacewings wipe out the eggs and larvae , and damoiselle bugs , two - blob stink bugs , and ground beetles also target the larvae .
AzaSol Insecticide
Planting later in the season can help reduce defoliation . Insecticidal goop can be effective , as well as neem products such as AzaSol , available at Arbico Organics .
Sunflower Moths
Homoeosoma electellumcan be a serious pest of cultivated sunflowers . The adult moth look like little light brown - gray cigar , and the larvae are brown with longitudinal white bar .
The adults are mostly nocturnal , pillow under the leafage during the day , and they lay eggs on the flower head . see for sinister frass ( aka dirt ball poop ) and webbing on the flower heads , which indicate the larvae are feeding in spite of appearance .
Young larvae feed on pollen while honest-to-goodness larvae feed on the seeds and flower head tissues . Larvae eating damage increase the peril of infection byRhizopusfungi , which will rot the flower heads .
In the wild , over half of the larvae are parasitized by wasps . great fields of self-aggrandizing headed , cultivatedHelianthusprovide a huge amount of available refuge for the larvae , rendering the parasitoid wasps less effective . But small planting like your garden should be well protected by these good louse !
Somecultivars of sunflowersdon’t create pollen . This may deter pestilence that rely on pollen for food during one or more liveliness stages . Read about some of thebest pollenless cultivar in this guide .
prove aBacillus thuringiensisproduct such as Monterey Bt Liquid to treat plants infest with these larvae . Insecticidal soap or neem - based products such as AzaSol are also options .
Sunflower Midges
Contarinia schulziare diminutive midges that lie eggs in sunflower heads , and the larvae feed on the tissues of developing seeds and bract . This causes low seed yield and twisted , gnarled flower heads .
impairment is not usually far-flung . Delaying planting by a duet weeks can help reduce the risk and severity of potential infestation .
Try rotating where you plant your sunflowers each year so you are n’t implant straight off into an infested site . Some hybrid are resistant to midge , so keep an eye out for those if these insects have been a problem in the past .
Insecticides are not effective since the tiny midge larva are very well protected inside the helianthus heads .
Thistle Caterpillars
The larvae of the beautiful nectar - loving painted peeress butterfly ( Vanessa cardui ) , thistle caterpillars adore a good helianthus snack .
They come in a change of colors from unclouded greens to black , with a luminousness stripe down both face , and branching spur all over their bodies .
The larvae feed on the leaves , creating irregularly shaped maw , and surround themselves with webbing .
terms is typically minimal and does n’t warrant handling , but it is good to know who is masticate on your valued works . If these pests do become a trouble , control them as you would sunflower moths .
Weevils
There are several different weevil that prey onHelianthus , including the head clipping weevil ( Haplorynchites aeneus ) and the gray ( Smicronyx sordidus)and red seed weevil ( S. fulvus ) .
You ’ll make out a weevil when you see one . They have long snouts , like an elephant !
Weevils are pros at play dead , though , so the adults can be hard to find . Shadows from bird wing over or you rustling through your flush patch can make them to stiffen and drop off the industrial plant as if they are dead .
The nous clipping weevil causes damage you wo n’t be able-bodied to overlook . They gird the prime bow or leaf petioles , leaving part break up head and leaves hang sadly on the plant .
The gray and ruby seed weevils , each the color of its name , are the most usual damaging pests ofHelianthus , with the red weevil being the more common of the two . The adults feed on pollen and dwell testis in developing seeds , which the larva eat once hatch .
The same Cartesian product that work against sunflower moths will work for weevils . Concentrate software of neem product or insecticidal soaps on the backs of the flower heads . The good metre to control sunflower moth and weevils is often overlap , so you may down two bug with one app if both pest are present !
Since weevil larvae drop into the soil to pupate , good nematode can be very effective in preventing future infestation .
verify the product you select hold the nematode speciesHeterorhabditis bacteriophora .
NemaSeek Hb Beneficial Nematodes
NemaSeek Hb Beneficial Nematodes is a good selection , and it’savailable from Arbico Organics .
Wireworms and Darkling Beetles
specie from the wireworm menage Elateridae , as well as delusive wireworm from the family Tenebrionidae , all love a helianthus collation .
Adult wireworms are known as click beetles and they issue forth in various colours . Wireworm larvae have a sound signified of sense of smell , and move towards the carbon dioxide olfactory property emit by germinating seeds . They are blanched to brown , very slim , and have hard , jointed bodies .
The larvae feed on the underground portions of the plants , including seeds and stem . As a result , the flora will turn yellow and wilt .
False wireworms , or darkling beetles , may also be seen in various colors . Their firmly - bodied larvae look very like to wireworm and come in lustrous shades of cream , yellowed , or tan . They feed on germinating seeds as well , so it can be hard to assure the difference between the two .
For both types of pests , prevent infestations by remove all plant debris from the garden , and till to expose the worm to predatory animal . lease your poulet operate looseafter tilling , or handpick them yourself and put them in a bucket of soapy weewee .
If you see evidence of yellowing , it can be unmanageable to find out if wireworms are the job . To entrap the louse , examine this trick :
dilute a potato in half and spear up it on a joint . Bury the white potato , pass on part of the pin uncovered so you could find it again . A hebdomad by and by , pull out it out and see if there are any wireworms feeding on it .
NemAttack Beneficial Nematodes
Try applying beneficial nematodes such asSteinernema carpocapsae , useable at Arbico Organics , to control wireworms .
Other Pests
Two other significant and common garden pestilence thatdon’thave six ramification are birds and squirrel .
Blackbirds , yellowbird , grosbeak , sparrow , dove , pigeons , and squirrels all dearest to snack on sunflowers . The eminent nutritionist’s calorie , protein , and juicy content of the germ is attractive to brute that are breed , storing fat for the wintertime , or prepare for migration .
break out our article to learnhow to protect helianthus from birds and athirst squirrels .
No More Snacking on My Sunflowers!
The self-aggrandising , gorgeous , pollen and nectar producing blooms are indisputable to attract a mix of admire humans and hungry critters .
mostly , the small-scale patch or quarrel of helianthus you get in your garden wo n’t see one-half of these gadfly , but if they do appear , now you ’ve got the know - how to control them !
And once you ’re done there , chink out these clause next to learn and using sunflower :
© Ask the Experts , LLC . ALL right RESERVED.See our TOSfor more details . Cartesian product photos via Arbico Organics . Uncredited photos : Shutterstock .
About
Sylvia Dekker
