Fruits Archives - Page 3 of 3

Japanese Beetles

Found primarily in the eastern United States, this pest eats almost everything except vegetables. The C-shaped grubs whitish, up to 1-inch-long, with brown heads and three pairs of legs feed heavily on plant roots; lawns are especially likely to be attacked. When the 1/2 inch long, metallic green beetles with coppery wing covers emerge, they … Read more

Fruit Flies

Fruit flies have brick red eyes, are yellow-brown in color, and have transverse black rings across their abdomen. They can be a major agricultural pest, with the potential to destroy up to 100 percent of some crops. Females lay some four hundred eggs, about five at a time, into rotting fruit or other suitable material, … Read more

Flea Beetles

These tiny, oval jumping insects vary in color depending on the species, but most types are black, shiny bronze, or dark blue. Except for a desert species with a particular fondness for corn, all have an appetite for a broad range of edible plants. Adults chew holes in leaves; the white larvae feed on roots, … Read more

Fire Ants

Many kinds of ants live in highly organized colonies in the soil, under rocks, and in tree cavities. Most types don’t eat plants, but instead cause trouble by driving away creatures that prey on or parasitize sap-feeding pests such as aphids, whiteflies, mealybugs, and soft scales. All these pests excrete honeydew, a sugary sap ants … Read more

Fall Webworms

About an inch long, this leaf-feeding pest is a long-haired, pale green or yellow caterpillar with a black stripe down its back. It feeds from inside the silken, web-like nests it builds at branch tips. Target: Fruit, nut, and shade trees; roses and other ornamental shrubs. Damage: Leaves are chewed; individual branches and sometimes entire … Read more

Crickets

Crickets, are insects somewhat related to grasshoppers, and more closely related to katydids or bush crickets. They have somewhat flattened bodies and long antennae. There are about 900 species of crickets. They tend to be nocturnal and are often confused with grasshoppers because they have a similar body structure including jumping hind legs. Crickets are … Read more

Cankerworms

Also called inchworms for their looping motion, these 1 inch long pests are found in all but the southernmost parts of the country. Spring cankerworm moths show up in spring, fall cankerworm moths in autumn when weather turns cold. The caterpillars of both types feed in spring, moving from tree to tree on silken strands. … Read more

Aphids

Aphids come in a variety of colors and are small, pear-shaped, and soft-bodied, these slow-moving sucking insects usually congregate in clusters. They’re sitting ducks for many natural enemies-but nonetheless, they prosper, thanks to their prolific reproduction. The many species come in a wide range of colors; usually wingless, they’re equipped with two tubes, called cornicles, … Read more

Ants

Adelgids

Adelgids are tiny sized that look similar to aphid insects, frequently will cause unusual swellings called galls on conifer trees. Conifers are trees and shrubs that bear cones such as pine, spruce, hemlock, Douglas-fir, true fir, and many others. Adelgids feed by tapping into their host tree/shrub and withdrawing plant sap. Infestations can cause branch … Read more