Pests

Multiple species (Aphididae)

Small soft-bodied sap-sucking insects that reproduce explosively in spring. Excrete honeydew that supports sooty mold and attracts ants. Transmit viral diseases.

Multiple species

Robins, catbirds, mockingbirds, starlings, cedar waxwings and other songbirds can strip ripening berry and fruit crops in days. Crows and blackbirds also damage fresh sweet corn ears in milk stage. The single biggest yield-loss factor in unprotected home plantings.

Trichoplusia ni

Pale green caterpillars that arch their backs (loop) when crawling. Defoliate brassicas and lettuce, contaminate harvested heads. Adults are mottled gray-brown moths.

Anastrepha suspensa

Tropical fruit fly endemic to Florida and the Caribbean. Less aggressive on commercial citrus than Mediterranean fruit fly, but devastating on guava, carambola, and other thin-skinned tropicals.

Acalymma vittatum (striped) and Diabrotica undecimpunctata (spotted)

Yellow-and-black beetles that feed on cucurbit foliage and flowers, but the bigger problem is that they vector bacterial wilt and cucumber mosaic virus.

Odocoileus species

Whitetail and mule deer browse can devastate orchards and gardens, particularly in winter when food is scarce. Antler rub on young trunks kills saplings outright.

Multiple species (Chrysomelidae)

Tiny black or bronze jumping beetles that put hundreds of small holes in seedling leaves. Most damaging on direct-seeded brassicas and young eggplant.

Pieris rapae

Velvety green caterpillars that chew large irregular holes in brassica leaves and bore into heads. Adults are the small white butterflies seen fluttering through the garden.

Popillia japonica

Defoliating beetle introduced to North America in 1916. Skeletonizes leaves of many fruit trees, berry canes, and pecan.

Pseudococcidae spp.

Soft white waxy insects that cluster at leaf joints, fruit stems, and root crowns. Honeydew secretion supports sooty mold; root mealybugs cause decline that mimics drought.

Ceratitis capitata

Quarantine pest in many regions. Adult females puncture ripening fruit to lay eggs; larvae tunnel through the flesh, causing premature drop and rot.

Thrips tabaci

Tiny slender insects that rasp leaf surfaces and suck plant juices. Most damaging on onion and garlic where they reduce bulb size and transmit Iris yellow spot virus.

Conotrachelus nenuphar

Native weevil that lays eggs in young stone and pome fruit, causing characteristic crescent-shaped scars.

Sylvilagus and Lepus species

Cottontails and jackrabbits strip bark from young fruit trees in winter and graze tender garden vegetables year-round, especially seedlings.

Meloidogyne species

Microscopic soil-dwelling worm that forms galls on roots, reducing vigor and yield.

Quadraspidiotus perniciosus

Tiny armored scale insect that encrusts bark, branches, and fruit. Heavy infestations weaken trees and produce red haloed spots on fruit at harvest. Persistent year-over-year if not controlled.

Coccoidea spp.

Sap-sucking insects that attach to bark, leaves, and fruit, secreting honeydew that fuels sooty mold. Heavy infestations weaken trees and cause leaf yellowing.

Multiple species (Gastropoda)

Soft-bodied mollusks that feed on tender leaves and seedlings primarily at night. Damaging especially in wet years and shaded mulched gardens.

Lycorma delicatula

Invasive planthopper from Asia first detected in Pennsylvania 2014, now spreading through the Eastern US. Direct feeding weakens trees; honeydew supports sooty mold and reduces fruit quality.

Drosophila suzukii

Invasive vinegar fly that attacks ripening soft fruit, unlike native Drosophila species which target overripe fruit. Now the dominant berry-and-cherry pest across the US.

Anasa tristis

Brown shield-shaped bugs that feed on cucurbit foliage and fruit, causing wilting and fruit-quality damage. Transmit cucurbit yellow vine disease.

Lygus lineolaris

Mottled brown sucking bug that probes flower buds and developing fruit, causing 'cat-facing' deformities on tomato, peach, and strawberry. Wide host range and rapid generations.

Manduca quinquemaculata

Large green caterpillar (up to 4 inches) that defoliates tomato and other Solanaceae plants rapidly. Mature larvae become five-spotted hawk moths.

Tetranychus urticae

Tiny mite that feeds on leaf undersides, causing stippling and webbing during hot dry weather.

Microtus species

Field voles and meadow voles girdle young fruit-tree trunks under snow cover during winter and chew root crops. The leading cause of mysterious orchard losses.

Frankliniella occidentalis

Tiny slender insect that rasps leaf and flower surfaces. The primary vector for Tomato Spotted Wilt Virus and Iris Yellow Spot Virus, which makes it more damaging through disease transmission than direct feeding.

Multiple species (Aleyrodidae)

Tiny white moth-like flying insects that feed on plant sap and excrete honeydew. Transmit numerous viral diseases including tomato yellow leaf curl virus.

Rhagoletis mendax

Native fruit fly whose larvae develop inside blueberries, the primary fresh-market quality concern in eastern North America.

Halyomorpha halys

Invasive stink bug from Asia that pierces fruit, causing corky tissue and surface dimpling.

Psila rosae

Fly whose larvae tunnel into carrot and parsnip roots, leaving rust-colored scars and entry points for secondary rot.

Rhagoletis cingulata

Native fly whose larvae develop in ripening cherries, the primary fresh-market quality concern.

Phyllocnistis citrella

Tiny moth larvae tunnel inside young citrus leaves, leaving silvery serpentine trails. Damage is mostly cosmetic on mature trees but stunts new plantings.

Cydia pomonella

The most damaging pest of apple worldwide. Larvae tunnel into developing fruit, ruining the crop.

Leptinotarsa decemlineata

Yellow-and-black-striped beetle and red-orange humpbacked larvae that defoliate potato and eggplant. Capable of destroying a planting in days during peak feeding.

Helicoverpa zea

Caterpillar that bores into corn ear tips through the silk channel and into developing tomato fruit. Also called tomato fruitworm. The most damaging US sweet-corn pest.

Cryptomyzus ribis

Sap-feeding aphid that causes characteristic red blistering on currant and gooseberry leaves in spring.

Synanthedon tipuliformis

Clearwing moth whose larvae tunnel inside currant and gooseberry canes, hollowing them out.

Cydia latiferreana

Moth whose larvae bore into developing hazelnuts and chestnuts, the primary direct-pest concern for nut quality in the Pacific Northwest and increasingly in the East.

Nematus ribesii

Sawfly whose larvae can rapidly defoliate currant and gooseberry bushes, working from the inside of the bush outward.

Epilachna varivestis

Coppery-orange ladybug-like adults and yellow spiny larvae that skeletonize bean foliage. The defining bean pest in the eastern US.

Delia antiqua

Fly whose larvae tunnel into onion bulbs and roots, causing rot and stunted plants. Three generations per year in most US zones.

Grapholita molesta

Stone-fruit pest whose larvae tunnel into shoot tips and later into fruit.

Sannina uroceriformis

Clearwing moth larvae bore into persimmon trunks at the soil line.

Oberea bimaculata

Long-horned beetle whose larvae girdle and tunnel into bramble canes, causing characteristic wilted shoot tips.

Pennisetia marginata

Clearwing moth whose larvae feed in the crown and lower canes of raspberries, often killing entire plants over two years.

Melittia cucurbitae

Day-flying clearwing moth whose larvae bore into squash stems at the base and hollow them out, causing sudden wilting and plant death. The dominant squash killer east of the Rockies.

Anthonomus signatus

Weevil that lays eggs in strawberry flower buds and clips the pedicel, causing the buds to drop or hang.

Otiorhynchus ovatus

Beetle whose larvae feed on strawberry roots and crowns, weakening or killing plants over time.

Datana integerrima

Gregarious caterpillar that feeds in dense colonies on walnut and pecan foliage, capable of defoliating entire branches in days.

Rhagoletis completa

Tephritid fly whose larvae develop inside walnut husks, causing dark staining of the shell and reduced kernel quality.

Eriosoma lanigerum

Aphid that feeds on apple roots and aerial wood, producing distinctive cottony white wax. Root colonies cause galls that reduce vigor; aerial colonies disfigure new growth.

Crioceris asparagi

Blue-black beetle with cream spots that feeds on asparagus spears in spring and ferns in summer. Defoliates ferns reducing crown energy storage for next year.

Curculio sayi and Curculio caryatrypes

Weevils whose larvae develop inside chestnut kernels, the leading cause of harvest loss in unmanaged plantings.

Desmocerus palliatus

Long-horned beetle whose larvae bore into elderberry stems and roots, weakening older canes.

Cotinis mutabilis

Large green scarab beetle that feeds on ripe figs in the western US.

Leptoglossus species

Pomegranate's primary pest in the southwestern US, piercing fruit and causing spoilage.

Amyelois transitella

Moth whose larvae infest mummified almonds and continue feeding into the new crop. The dominant almond pest in California, also a vector for Aspergillus aflatoxin contamination.

Talponia plummeriana

Tiny moth whose larvae bore into pawpaw flower stems, causing fruit drop.

Cacopsylla pyricola

Pear's primary pest, sucking sap and producing honeydew that supports sooty mold.

Curculio caryae

The most damaging pecan pest east of the Rockies. Adults emerge from soil in late summer, feed on developing nuts, and lay eggs inside ripening kernels.