found worm in my stalk WTF?

Grizzdude

Grizzdude

Well-Known Member
So I saw a branch tip that was dead so I cut it off and I see a worm inside the stalk. I went to another plant that had the same thing with a dead branch tip and found that a worm burrowed into the main stem! What the heck do I do! I spray with neem every now and then but it has been a few weeks since my last application. What are these and how do I take care of them?
 
MellowHaze

MellowHaze

Active Member

do they look like this?

Stem borers are sometimes larvae of beetles or larvae of moths. Once you discover them in your stems it is too late to effectively treat them.

Eggs are laid on the plant and when the eggs hatch the larvae burrows into the stem. There are systemic insecticides available to control some borers, but they aren't the kinds of product one would spray on Cannabis. Google "controlling borers" to see what you are up against.

peace :bigjoint:
 
dyzel

dyzel

Well-Known Member
got a picture of the worm?
Generally they are good for your plants (earthworms) as they move the soil about.
I could only imagine that what you have in your stem is some sort of insects larvae.
A good example of such a parasite:

Tomato pinworm.
These are the larvae of a certain moth.

Look up some pictures of it on google and see if this is what plagues you.

Good luck dude.

I imagine, if you got rid of the dead leaves containing the worms, they should have been taken care of.


Assuming these are pinworms, they can be warded off.
Destroy all the plant debris and dead foliage from your garden. Dead or dying plants can encourage the infestation of the tomato pinworm. Be sure to burn or carry these far away from your tomato plants and do not just put the dead plants in a mulch pitch near the plants.

Use a food grade insecticide to get rid of them.
 
Carl Spackler

Carl Spackler

Well-Known Member
If you can identify the entry point (fine sawdust like material on the trunk) simply take a sewing needle and probe in several spots all the way throught the trunk to effectively spear the borer. It may slightly stress the plant if you go a little bit overboard but is much less than the damage the borer creates. On my outdoor grows, I apply a insecticide called Imidacloprid (patented under the trade name "Merit") as it is a systemic, broad-spectrum insecticde that works well as a preventive for boring insects. If the damage is confined to the stems only (not the trunk) you can also cut the damage away with a pair of pruning shears then dispose of properly. I usually burn them as I hate the bastards. Other insecticdes such as Acephate (Orthene) can be applied early in the season in your immediate grow area for control of beetle borers.
 
Grizzdude

Grizzdude

Well-Known Member
Yeah I can definetly see the entry point on the plant that still has the bug in the main stem. Thats a good idea with the needle, I'll do that today. Do you recommend applying any of the insecticides you mentioned right now? Or are those only used earlier on in the season for prevention? I killed the one bug I found, he was red orange and about 1/4" long, I'll try to get a picture if I find another one.
 
Space Angel

Space Angel

Well-Known Member
had the same thing in last yrs. crop and I just plugged the hole with a stick and said fuck it. the weed was terrific and seen no damage to the plants or how they produced. had seven plant likes that. wait long enough without plugging the hole and they spew their eggs out of the hole
 
Grizzdude

Grizzdude

Well-Known Member
Hey Thanks for the response, I looked into MERIT but it looks like it kills beneficial bugs also. I have a shit ton of different bugs including lady bugs and wasps, tiny wasps and other bugs too. I don't want to mess up the GH eco system. I'll plug the holes up and keep an eye out on these plants. I did read that the wasps eat the burowing insects so I'm just going to let nature do it's thing for now and keep an eye on them.
 
Carl Spackler

Carl Spackler

Well-Known Member
Looks pretty rough. Hopefully they haven't invaded the main trunk(s) of the plants. As the flowers mature, weight is applying more and more stress to the stems and trunk. This can be a real problem if a thunderstorm or straight-line winds occur. I had a crop in the mid-90's that was pretty much trashed by the combination of borers, heavy yield and strong winds. Yes, systemics can be more toxic than contact-type insecticides but they are also generally less stressful to the plant as phytotoxicity is not a issue. By design, products such as Merit offer residual control for several months then begin to abate towards the end of the vegetative stage (in my climate.) This is why I apply this product in the early, veg. stage and use more benign controls during any outbreaks at flowering. Applying something like Carbaryl (Sevin) or Malathion over the entire grow area may provide some level of control but the key to good insect control is interrupt the life cycle of whatever you are trying to kill. Since these borers may already be in pupate (as the photo shows), control may be difficult if not impossible with insecticides as they are no longer tunneling through the stem or ingesting any food. I wish I had a better scenario for you but mechanical removal or physically spearing them (needles) may be your best options at this point. I would love to hear anyone elses control methods as well.
 
Grizzdude

Grizzdude

Well-Known Member
Ok I figuer I'd update on the damage. ALL IS GOOD!! So it looked like they attacked my stems for only a couple weeks, not too many though. Basicaly they would bore in and eat about 2 inces worth of inside stem stuff, then they went into cacoon stage and flew out the stem. they actually made most of my branches stronger by forming knots like when you super crop. only damage was when they went directly into the bud and only a few got hit.
 
Spanishfly

Spanishfly

Well-Known Member
veggiegardener said:
Avoid systemic pesticides. Some of them are extremely toxic to people.

http://greenhouse.ucdavis.edu/pest/pmsds/Merit%202F%20msds.PDF

Merit seems less toxic than most, but use with care.
Click to expand...
Your link gives loads of warnings about the dangers of drinking it from the bottle - but says nothing about any possible hazard of eating a tomato from a plant treated with the stuff.

I think it must be rendered harmless once taken up by a plant - or we would be reading about people falling down dead after eating affected apples. After all, this stuff is very widely used.
 
L

lowprofile

Member
Carl Spackler said:
If you can identify the entry point (fine sawdust like material on the trunk) simply take a sewing needle and probe in several spots all the way throught the trunk to effectively spear the borer. It may slightly stress the plant if you go a little bit overboard but is much less than the damage the borer creates. On my outdoor grows, I apply a insecticide called Imidacloprid (patented under the trade name "Merit") as it is a systemic, broad-spectrum insecticde that works well as a preventive for boring insects. If the damage is confined to the stems only (not the trunk) you can also cut the damage away with a pair of pruning shears then dispose of properly. I usually burn them as I hate the bastards. Other insecticdes such as Acephate (Orthene) can be applied early in the season in your immediate grow area for control of beetle borers.
Click to expand...
I use Merit alot @ work for turf applications, I wouldnt smoke anything treated by it imo, its nasty stuff, but if applied EARLY in the season to your garden area, like, before anything is planted/sprouted, can prevent grubs/beetle worms/larvae at bay. Be wary tho, Merit is a pretty broad spectrum insecticide, so theres LOTS of beneficial insects you could possibly be impacting as well, lady bugs, hornets/wasps/bees, ect. Make sure you are properly liscenced to apply the product and fully understand the risks :)

gl.

*edit*

that msds is pretty crappy lol, youd probably get some better information regarding application to agricultural crops/edible foods on the label.

@ Spanishfly. typically, if the bottle says dont ingest it, then even in a super deluted amount, you shouldnt ingest it ;)
 
DubyasDeezenuts

DubyasDeezenuts

New Member
Prob mold gnat larvae... do you have gnats or fruit flies? Small orange-brown worms, inside the stalks of dead fan leaves or branches ?
 
MustangStudFarm

MustangStudFarm

Well-Known Member
Grizzdude said:
Hey Thanks for the response, I looked into MERIT but it looks like it kills beneficial bugs also. I have a shit ton of different bugs including lady bugs and wasps, tiny wasps and other bugs too. I don't want to mess up the GH eco system. I'll plug the holes up and keep an eye out on these plants. I did read that the wasps eat the burowing insects so I'm just going to let nature do it's thing for now and keep an eye on them.
Click to expand...
Are you growing plants that attract the insects? If not, it would be a great way to get you #'s up. This is just a short list of plants and there are more: https://www.permaculturenews.org/2014/10/04/plants-attract-beneficial-insects/
 
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