Cacyreus marshalli eating Dolichos lablab

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David Dickinson

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Cacyreus marshalli eating Dolichos lablab
« on: October 28, 2012, 08:24:40 PM »
Having lost nearly all of my pelargoniums to Cacyreus marshalli a few years back I decided not to bother replacing them. Now the grubs are feasting on the seeds of Dolichos lablab by eating through the pod! Looks like I'll have to give up on this plant too :(
I have a small garden in Rome, Italy. Some open soil, some concrete, some paved. Temperatures in winter occasionally down to 0°C. Summer temperatures up to 40°C in the shade. There are never watering restrictions but, of course, there is little natural water for much of June, July and August.

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Alisdair

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Re: Cacyreus marshalli eating Dolichos lablab
« Reply #1 on: December 06, 2012, 12:19:58 PM »
Interesting and worrying that they've gone for your lablab beans, David. I thought this invasive pest (the caterpillar of the "geranium bronze" butterfly) stuck to pelargoniums and geraniums, but apparently in their native south africa they do eat some zizyphus species.
Alisdair Aird
Gardens in SE England (Sussex); also coastal Southern Greece, and (in a very small way) South West France; MGS member (and former president); vice chairman RHS Lily Group, past chairman Cyclamen Society