Big bug eating the roots

island cassie · 01-04-2013, 10:24 AM

Quite a few of my plants have been looking less good than they used to, and when fruiting have barely made it to ripe bunch time. I had put it down to a soaking wet winter and my inattention to fertilising. However on cutting down some of the plants because of their poor condition, the roots have been drilled by several somethings that leave a half inch hole. We couldn't find the culprit. K J - you are in my neck of the woods - have you seen anything like this and if so, do you know how to get rid of it? There appeared to be no drill holes on the outside of the trunk that we could see.

2woodensticks · 01-04-2013, 10:27 AM

look at.. pr giants.. last post on boring weevil..sounds like you might have same problem...

island cassie · 01-04-2013, 11:34 AM

Well - there is no sign of anything from the outside. I did consider Japanese beetle but there are no damaged leaves anywhere in the garden, and there are no beetles to be seen. The damage does look as though it could be caused by a huge grub.

PR-Giants · 01-04-2013, 11:37 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by island cassie

Quite a few of my plants have been looking less good than they used to, and when fruiting have barely made it to ripe bunch time. I had put it down to a soaking wet winter and my inattention to fertilising. However on cutting down some of the plants because of their poor condition, the roots have been drilled by several somethings that leave a half inch hole. We couldn't find the culprit. K J - you are in my neck of the woods - have you seen anything like this and if so, do you know how to get rid of it? There appeared to be no drill holes on the outside of the trunk that we could see.

I've never seen any bug that eats the roots, from what I know about weevils they only attack the corm and the lower part of the pseudostem.

island cassie · 01-04-2013, 06:27 PM

Sorry - I didn't make myself clear - yes, the corm and lower stem were drilled. If this sounds like weevils - is there a remedy?

robguz24 · 01-04-2013, 07:19 PM

Yes, it sounds like weevils. From what I understand only pretty awful chemicals, which may not even be legal in many areas for a home gardener if at all. Some have suggested using neem pellets or powder. I've also read that you can put sand around the base of the corm. Diatemaceous earth may help, but as soon as it gets wet it's useless. What I do is every time I cut down a plant, I cut the p-stem into foot long chunks, split them, place them split side down near the corms, then check daily for weevils and crush them. Doing this consistently, over time the number of weevils I find has dropped, and there seems to be less clear damage when I initially cut off the p-stem. The problem seems to be having enough p-stems available to use as weevil traps.

PR-Giants · 01-04-2013, 07:27 PM

More Photos
African Rhino Horn & the Banana Corm Weevil

This is what weevil damage looks like.

What banana cultivars are they attacking?

I only have a problem with my Cuerno de Alce, my Maricongo, Manzano, Morado, and Cavendish have never had weevils.

What to do depends on what you prefer, GrubEx is commonly used here.
Scotts GrubEx1 Season-Long Grub Killer

I prefer to keep the area clean and encourage ants to move it, but not the big black ants. They'll drill more holes in the pseudostem than the weevils.

Damaged caused by large Black Ants.

The RD may permit the use of Carbendazim, but it was banned in the US for health concerns and countries that do allow it's use can still export bananas to the US.

Using Pseudostem injector for effective control of Fusarium wilt, Erwinia rot and Weevil attacks. ~ Tissue Culture Banana

Check with the local farmers and see what they use.

PR-Giants · 01-04-2013, 07:45 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by robguz24

Yes, it sounds like weevils. From what I understand only pretty awful chemicals, which may not even be legal in many areas for a home gardener if at all. Some have suggested using neem pellets or powder. I've also read that you can put sand around the base of the corm. Diatemaceous earth may help, but as soon as it gets wet it's useless. What I do is every time I cut down a plant, I cut the p-stem into foot long chunks, split them, place them split side down near the corms, then check daily for weevils and crush them. Doing this consistently, over time the number of weevils I find has dropped, and there seems to be less clear damage when I initially cut off the p-stem. The problem seems to be having enough p-stems available to use as weevil traps.

From what I understand the pseudostem traps are used to monitor the problem and not as the solution. The traps will continually have more eggs hatching and killing them one at a time sounds more like using your fingers to plug the holes in a dyke.

sandy0225 · 01-04-2013, 08:23 PM

If they're not close to blooming and used as ornamentals, try some of the systemic rose and flower care with imidacloprid or acephate, use it as a foliar spray and a drench around the base of the plant. It will take 3-4 weeks to travel through the entire plant and take effect.

robguz24 · 01-04-2013, 09:02 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by PR-Giants

From what I understand the pseudostem traps are used to monitor the problem and not as the solution. The traps will continually have more eggs hatching and killing them one at a time sounds more like using your fingers to plug the holes in a dyke.

I left out the part about making sure to throw away the cut traps within a couple weeks before the eggs hatch! Otherwise you are just giving them new places to breed.

Anyway, I can't imagine it would be a viable solution for large scale growing. I wonder what they do on organic banana farms? I am just following the suggestions of the Kepler & Rust book on bananas in Hawaii. It seems to have helped in my specific situation. They attack mine at different amounts too. Ice Creams and any of the Hawaiian varieties (Iholenas, A'ea'e) I have seem to be damaged the most. Dwarf Brazillians seem to have lots of them, but the grubs don't seem to cause damage beyond the outer layers of the p-stem.

PR-Giants · 01-04-2013, 09:58 PM

General Information on Pest and Damage

www.infonet-biovision.org - Banana weevil

I could never throw away any part of the banana plant, I can't even throw away a banana peel.

I crush and dry the pseudostems, and use them to amend my soil.

Annually I spend $0.00 on fertilizer.

island cassie · 01-04-2013, 10:20 PM

Thanks K J and Rob for all the extremely useful information and K J for the pictures. Looking at the beetle damage in your corm picture K J, I am struck by the apparent small size of the holes - mine must be around a centimetre across (4/10 inch) and the plants that I have found to be affected so far have been Saba and Blue Java, although now I am looking suspiciously at some of the others. None appear to have any problems with new pups - the plants start to look sickly at around flowering time. In the morning I will have a closer look at the grub holes and get some pics. I am not sure what chemicals are available here but all the information will be very helpful. Thank you.

PR-Giants · 01-04-2013, 10:28 PM

Carol you don't need to look at the plant to know if you have weevils.

I can tell merely by applying lateral pressure to the pseudostem, the amount of resistance is a much better and quicker indicator.

island cassie · 01-06-2013, 09:42 AM

It has been pouring with rain the last 2 days, so no pics until it dries up - but I have been out briefly and applied some lateral pressure and quite a few pstems are rocky to say the least!! Hmmm!

Magilla Gorilla · 01-16-2013, 01:37 AM

Banana corm weevils were not a problem in Santa Barbara. Then I moved to Hawaii. They attacked several plants. I dipped the plants in a bleach solution that I thought for sure would kill them. The plants made it back after looking like death. My plants were potted and could be treated. I now spray a solution of water and Dr. Bronner's peppermint soap weekly on all of my plants. I have caught the little bastards and sprayed them and the soap kills them. It also kills white flies and other pests. It's safe and organic.

island cassie · 01-16-2013, 05:41 AM

Thanks Andrew, I am going back to England for a brief visit shortly and I will see what remedies I can find there.

Magilla Gorilla · 01-16-2013, 02:27 PM

Safe travels!!

01-04-2013, 10:24 AM	#1 (permalink)
island cassie island cassie's Photo Gallery Location: Dominican Republic Find me on the map! Zone: 11+ I guess Name: Island Cassie Join Date: Jan 2007 Posts: 3,170 BananaBucks : 551,379 Feedback: 2 / 100% Said "Thanks" 1,708 Times Was Thanked 2,079 Times in 874 Posts Said "Welcome to Bananas" 416 Times	Big bug eating the roots Quite a few of my plants have been looking less good than they used to, and when fruiting have barely made it to ripe bunch time. I had put it down to a soaking wet winter and my inattention to fertilising. However on cutting down some of the plants because of their poor condition, the roots have been drilled by several somethings that leave a half inch hole. We couldn't find the culprit. K J - you are in my neck of the woods - have you seen anything like this and if so, do you know how to get rid of it? There appeared to be no drill holes on the outside of the trunk that we could see.

01-04-2013, 10:27 AM	#2 (permalink)
2woodensticks PURA VIDA!! Location: close to tampa florida Find me on the map! Join Date: Nov 2011 Posts: 697 BananaBucks : 59,899 Feedback: 0 / 0% Said "Thanks" 421 Times Was Thanked 469 Times in 286 Posts Said "Welcome to Bananas" 310 Times	Re: Big bug eating the roots look at.. pr giants.. last post on boring weevil..sounds like you might have same problem... __________________ got to love em..{neotropical rattlesnake..cascabell}

01-04-2013, 11:34 AM	#3 (permalink)
island cassie island cassie's Photo Gallery Location: Dominican Republic Find me on the map! Zone: 11+ I guess Name: Island Cassie Join Date: Jan 2007 Posts: 3,170 BananaBucks : 551,379 Feedback: 2 / 100% Said "Thanks" 1,708 Times Was Thanked 2,079 Times in 874 Posts Said "Welcome to Bananas" 416 Times	Re: Big bug eating the roots Well - there is no sign of anything from the outside. I did consider Japanese beetle but there are no damaged leaves anywhere in the garden, and there are no beetles to be seen. The damage does look as though it could be caused by a huge grub.

01-04-2013, 06:27 PM	#5 (permalink)
island cassie island cassie's Photo Gallery Location: Dominican Republic Find me on the map! Zone: 11+ I guess Name: Island Cassie Join Date: Jan 2007 Posts: 3,170 BananaBucks : 551,379 Feedback: 2 / 100% Said "Thanks" 1,708 Times Was Thanked 2,079 Times in 874 Posts Said "Welcome to Bananas" 416 Times	Re: Big bug eating the roots Sorry - I didn't make myself clear - yes, the corm and lower stem were drilled. If this sounds like weevils - is there a remedy?

01-04-2013, 07:19 PM	#6 (permalink)
robguz24 Rob Location: Kalapana, Hawaii Find me on the map! Zone: 11 Name: Rob Join Date: Sep 2010 Posts: 1,506 BananaBucks : 301,451 Feedback: 0 / 0% Said "Thanks" 1,320 Times Was Thanked 4,961 Times in 1,080 Posts Said "Welcome to Bananas" 204 Times	Re: Big bug eating the roots Yes, it sounds like weevils. From what I understand only pretty awful chemicals, which may not even be legal in many areas for a home gardener if at all. Some have suggested using neem pellets or powder. I've also read that you can put sand around the base of the corm. Diatemaceous earth may help, but as soon as it gets wet it's useless. What I do is every time I cut down a plant, I cut the p-stem into foot long chunks, split them, place them split side down near the corms, then check daily for weevils and crush them. Doing this consistently, over time the number of weevils I find has dropped, and there seems to be less clear damage when I initially cut off the p-stem. The problem seems to be having enough p-stems available to use as weevil traps. __________________ My micro-farm Stay on my Big Island banana farm cottage

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01-04-2013, 07:27 PM	#7 (permalink)
PR-Giants Commercial Grower Location: Florida & Greater Antilles Find me on the map! Join Date: Feb 2012 Posts: 4,767 BananaBucks : 14,682 Feedback: 16 / 100% Said "Thanks" 2,985 Times Was Thanked 13,030 Times in 3,841 Posts Said "Welcome to Bananas" 3,231 Times	Re: Big bug eating the roots More Photos African Rhino Horn & the Banana Corm Weevil This is what weevil damage looks like. What banana cultivars are they attacking? I only have a problem with my Cuerno de Alce, my Maricongo, Manzano, Morado, and Cavendish have never had weevils. What to do depends on what you prefer, GrubEx is commonly used here. Scotts GrubEx1 Season-Long Grub Killer I prefer to keep the area clean and encourage ants to move it, but not the big black ants. They'll drill more holes in the pseudostem than the weevils. Damaged caused by large Black Ants. The RD may permit the use of Carbendazim, but it was banned in the US for health concerns and countries that do allow it's use can still export bananas to the US. Using Pseudostem injector for effective control of Fusarium wilt, Erwinia rot and Weevil attacks. ~ Tissue Culture Banana Check with the local farmers and see what they use. __________________ PR-Giants Photo Gallery 15,000+ Varieties Last edited by PR-Giants : 01-05-2013 at 10:09 AM.

01-04-2013, 08:23 PM	#9 (permalink)
sandy0225 Northern Tropics sandy0225's Photo Gallery Location: Muncie, Indiana zone 5 Find me on the map! Zone: zone 5 Name: Sandy Join Date: Nov 2005 Posts: 1,718 BananaBucks : 474,551 Feedback: 31 / 97% Said "Thanks" 38 Times Was Thanked 1,801 Times in 682 Posts Said "Welcome to Bananas" 9 Times	Re: Big bug eating the roots If they're not close to blooming and used as ornamentals, try some of the systemic rose and flower care with imidacloprid or acephate, use it as a foliar spray and a drench around the base of the plant. It will take 3-4 weeks to travel through the entire plant and take effect. __________________ Sandy Burrell Northern Tropics Greenhouse 1501 East Fuson Road Muncie, IN 47302 www.northerntropics.com specializing in bananas, heirloom tomatoes and water gardening plants~ check out our new online store at our website!

01-04-2013, 09:58 PM	#11 (permalink)
PR-Giants Commercial Grower Location: Florida & Greater Antilles Find me on the map! Join Date: Feb 2012 Posts: 4,767 BananaBucks : 14,682 Feedback: 16 / 100% Said "Thanks" 2,985 Times Was Thanked 13,030 Times in 3,841 Posts Said "Welcome to Bananas" 3,231 Times	Re: Big bug eating the roots General Information on Pest and Damage www.infonet-biovision.org - Banana weevil I could never throw away any part of the banana plant, I can't even throw away a banana peel. I crush and dry the pseudostems, and use them to amend my soil. Annually I spend $0.00 on fertilizer. __________________ PR-Giants Photo Gallery 15,000+ Varieties Last edited by PR-Giants : 01-04-2013 at 10:07 PM.

01-04-2013, 10:20 PM	#12 (permalink)
island cassie island cassie's Photo Gallery Location: Dominican Republic Find me on the map! Zone: 11+ I guess Name: Island Cassie Join Date: Jan 2007 Posts: 3,170 BananaBucks : 551,379 Feedback: 2 / 100% Said "Thanks" 1,708 Times Was Thanked 2,079 Times in 874 Posts Said "Welcome to Bananas" 416 Times	Re: Big bug eating the roots Thanks K J and Rob for all the extremely useful information and K J for the pictures. Looking at the beetle damage in your corm picture K J, I am struck by the apparent small size of the holes - mine must be around a centimetre across (4/10 inch) and the plants that I have found to be affected so far have been Saba and Blue Java, although now I am looking suspiciously at some of the others. None appear to have any problems with new pups - the plants start to look sickly at around flowering time. In the morning I will have a closer look at the grub holes and get some pics. I am not sure what chemicals are available here but all the information will be very helpful. Thank you.

01-04-2013, 10:28 PM	#13 (permalink)
PR-Giants Commercial Grower Location: Florida & Greater Antilles Find me on the map! Join Date: Feb 2012 Posts: 4,767 BananaBucks : 14,682 Feedback: 16 / 100% Said "Thanks" 2,985 Times Was Thanked 13,030 Times in 3,841 Posts Said "Welcome to Bananas" 3,231 Times	Re: Big bug eating the roots Carol you don't need to look at the plant to know if you have weevils. I can tell merely by applying lateral pressure to the pseudostem, the amount of resistance is a much better and quicker indicator. __________________ PR-Giants Photo Gallery 15,000+ Varieties

01-06-2013, 09:42 AM	#14 (permalink)
island cassie island cassie's Photo Gallery Location: Dominican Republic Find me on the map! Zone: 11+ I guess Name: Island Cassie Join Date: Jan 2007 Posts: 3,170 BananaBucks : 551,379 Feedback: 2 / 100% Said "Thanks" 1,708 Times Was Thanked 2,079 Times in 874 Posts Said "Welcome to Bananas" 416 Times	Re: Big bug eating the roots It has been pouring with rain the last 2 days, so no pics until it dries up - but I have been out briefly and applied some lateral pressure and quite a few pstems are rocky to say the least!! Hmmm!

01-16-2013, 01:37 AM	#15 (permalink)
Magilla Gorilla Magilla Gorilla's Photo Gallery Location: Holualoa, HI Find me on the map! Zone: 10 Name: Andrew Join Date: Apr 2008 Posts: 727 BananaBucks : 282,084 Feedback: 6 / 100% Said "Thanks" 612 Times Was Thanked 1,183 Times in 357 Posts Said "Welcome to Bananas" 79 Times	Re: Big bug eating the roots Banana corm weevils were not a problem in Santa Barbara. Then I moved to Hawaii. They attacked several plants. I dipped the plants in a bleach solution that I thought for sure would kill them. The plants made it back after looking like death. My plants were potted and could be treated. I now spray a solution of water and Dr. Bronner's peppermint soap weekly on all of my plants. I have caught the little bastards and sprayed them and the soap kills them. It also kills white flies and other pests. It's safe and organic. __________________ Andrew

01-16-2013, 05:41 AM	#16 (permalink)
island cassie island cassie's Photo Gallery Location: Dominican Republic Find me on the map! Zone: 11+ I guess Name: Island Cassie Join Date: Jan 2007 Posts: 3,170 BananaBucks : 551,379 Feedback: 2 / 100% Said "Thanks" 1,708 Times Was Thanked 2,079 Times in 874 Posts Said "Welcome to Bananas" 416 Times	Re: Big bug eating the roots Thanks Andrew, I am going back to England for a brief visit shortly and I will see what remedies I can find there.

01-16-2013, 02:27 PM	#17 (permalink)
Magilla Gorilla Magilla Gorilla's Photo Gallery Location: Holualoa, HI Find me on the map! Zone: 10 Name: Andrew Join Date: Apr 2008 Posts: 727 BananaBucks : 282,084 Feedback: 6 / 100% Said "Thanks" 612 Times Was Thanked 1,183 Times in 357 Posts Said "Welcome to Bananas" 79 Times	Re: Big bug eating the roots Safe travels!! __________________ Andrew

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