What's your worst pest and solutions?

[TorontoJoe]

Can’t believe I forgot my worst pest

Root Knot Nematode

• potted trees if infected - air layer or junk it
• inground trees - treating with jadam JLF/JMS and organic matter/fertilizers and pray roots can outrun or regrow faster than RKN can infect.

Yeah..... the one you can't really see.... such a bummer

 

[TorontoJoe]

Mr. Chonky here got evicted this morning.....

 

[JC Figgy]

Pill bug roly poly. They eat leaves, bark, and of course the fruit.

Solution: tbd. Prob tanglefoot but I hate that stuff. It reacts with bark no matter how you try to prevent it.

Have you tired sluggo plus? Supposed to kill roly polys too

 

[JC Figgy]

I had Alot of trouble with ants.
I feel like I've solved that problem completely by making up Ant poison bait stations.
I save up 16 oz water bottles, I'll mix sugar and Borax 50/50 with some water to make a syrup. Get a few hundred cotton balls. Get the "syrup" mixed into the cotton balls then put 2 or 3 in each water bottle. Spread the bait stations out one for every 3 or 4 full sized pot. On the ground not in or on the pot.

I’ve done this! Works great!

 

[JC Figgy]

Ambrosia beetles-

Unfortunately not much out there except spraying with permethrin to help prevent them. But you have to consistently spray them and use a pretty strong %. I’m upping the % I use next season. I had beetle activity from April to June this season.
Lost 9 trees.

 

[TorontoJoe]

mine were the squash bugs. I did the old grab and smash twice a day for a couple of weeks and no more problem,

I think I'd like to see that! Teresa in all her fury!

 

[TorontoJoe]

Ambrosia beetles-

Unfortunately not much out there except spraying with permethrin to help prevent them. But you have to consistently spray them and use a pretty strong %. I’m upping the % I use next season. I had beetle activity from April to June this season.
Lost 9 trees.

I forgot about them. I lost a bunch of trees.... I solved the problem completely by sealing off any damaged, broken or pruned wood. They go after the injuries. I've been using pruning paint... which is ugly. I think if you find a latex paint and match it to the bark it'll do the job and blend in well

 

[rogerfwright]

Birds, and ants.

 

[Franfig]

My problems are birds and squirrels. I continue to try different methods and is a work in progress.

 

[TorontoJoe]

Birds, and ants.

I can't recommend enough putting ant baits down among the trees. I was losing so many to ants and now virtually no ant losses.