Key Features
- Single leaves drop
- Single leaves wilt
Symptoms
Several leaves found on ground beneath trees. Fallen leaves have stems (petioles) that have been hollowed. Petiole can contain cream colored, wormlike larvae, and or sawdust.
Biology
Adults emerge from the soil in late spring to lay single eggs into each leaf stem (petiole). The egg hatches into cream colored, wormlike larva that tunnels through the petiole. After the leaf drops the larva completes its feeding and bores into the ground to enter the transition stage (pupae) in which it spends the winter. These insects have only one generation per year.
Management Recommendations
This insect seldom if ever causes more than several dozen leaves to drop per day for a period of about a month. This leaf loss does not affect tree health or appearance. No management action is needed. Pesticides are not recommended to control this pest.
Effective Pesticides
Pesticides are neither available nor recommended for managing this pest.
Resources
- Not satisfied with ID? Contact the Purdue Plant and Pest Diagnostic Lab
- Sign Up for the Purdue Landscape Report
