Simon's Blog - Garden Pests

There was shock news in the world of gardening last year, as for the first time in nearly a decade slugs and snails didn't top the list of the most troublesome garden pest.

Based on enquiries to the Royal Horticultural Society's Gardening Advice team, the top honour has gone to the handsome looking beast in the above photo, the Box Tree Caterpillar.

And here's the moth he turns into.

So here are your interesting Box Tree Caterpillar facts.

They are originally from East Asia and were first discovered here in the UK in 2011. They are now prevalent in the home counties and across South East England.

The larvae are around 4cm long and they feed on the leaves of the box plant, under a blanket of pale fine webbing which covers the infected plants.

So here's the rest of the pest top ten.

Snails and slugs came a close second.

Slug and snail damage mainly occurs in the spring and autumn but it can also become a problem during any damp period, which pretty much sums up our mild winter.

They tend to affect a wide range of ornamental plants and vegetables, including potato tubers and daffodils.

At number three it's Aphids.

As any gardener knows, aphids are sap-sucking insects that can cause a lack of plant vigour, distorted growth and numerous viruses. They are a particular bother if you're growing, amongst other things, strawberries, raspberries, tomatoes and cucumbers,

At number four it's the Large Cabbage White Butterfly.

These are a major pain to allotment holders all over the country as their larva can decimate cabbages in record time.

At number five it's the Vine Weevil.

These can infest a huge range of ornamental plants and fruits, especially the ones that grow in containers. It's also a case of double trouble with them, as the adults eat the leaves, whilst the grubs go for the roots.

At six it's Cushion Scale.

This usually affects camellia, holly and some other evergreen plants during the early months of the year and you can tell if the plants have got it due to a blackening of their foliage.

At number seven it's the Lily Beetle.

These pests like to eat the foliage of lilies (fancy that!) and fritillaries.

And there's another beetle at eight.

That's the Rosemary Beetle which feeds on the foliage of rosemary as well as lavender, sage and thyme.

At nine it's the Fuchsia Gall Mite which was first found for the first on the British mainland in 2007 and has since become widespread along the south coast.

And finally at number ten it's the Woolly Aphid.

It's common on apple trees, where the insects are hide under the white fluff that's often mistaken for mould.

So now you know what to look out for...happy gardening!