By Stan V. (Stan the Roseman) Griep
American Rose Society Certified Consulting Rosarian – Rocky Mountain District
Never heard of Spittlebugs? You are not alone. There are around 23,000 species of Spittlebugs (Family: Cercopidae) yet few are the gardeners that have ever really seen one. Most probably have seen the protective covering or nest they make, wondered what it was (or if someone had spit on their plant) and then blasted it off with a hard stream of water.
Learn About Spittlebugs
Spittlebugs are very good at hiding too so not real easy to spot. The protective covering they make looks like someone placed soap suds on your plant or bush. See the photo that goes with this article. Or perhaps looks like some ill mannered individual even spit on your plant or bush! The spittlebug nymphs make bubbles out of a liquid they secrete from their back ends (thus not really spittle). They get their name due to the foamy substance looking like spittle.
Once the spittlebug has formed up a nice group of bubbles, they will use their hind legs to cover themselves with the foamy substance. The spittle protects them from predators, temperature extremes and helps keep them from dehydrating.
The spittlebug lays eggs on old plant debris and the eggs are left there to overwinter. The eggs hatch in early spring at which time the young attach themselves to the host plant and begin to feed. The young go through five stages before reaching adulthood. Spittlebugs are related to Leaf Hoppers, the adults are 1/8 to ¼ inch long and they have wings. Their faces look a bit like the face of a frog, thus they are sometimes called Froghoppers.
How To Control Spittlebug
Even though the spittlebug young feed on the plants juices, they do little actual damage to the host plant in most cases unless there are huge numbers of them. A quick blast of water from a hose end sprayer will usually knock them off and eliminate spittlebug from the plant they are on.
Large numbers of spittlebugs can weaken or stunt the growth of the plant or bush they are on and in such cases a pesticide may be in order. Common pesticides will work to kill spittlebugs.
To help control spittlebug the following spring, do a good garden clean up in the fall making sure to get rid of as much old plant material as possible. Since the Spittlebug eggs overwinter in the old garden debris a good garden clean up in the fall will limit the numbers that hatch considerably.
Spittlebugs prefer pine trees and junipers but can be found on a variety of plants including rosebushes. Now if you see the sudsy or foaming looking little mass on your trees or plants you will know what it actually may be.
Print This Article - Printer Friendly Version
Helpful?:
Loading ...
By Stan V. (Stan the Roseman) Griep
American Rose Society Certified Consulting Rosarian – Rocky Mountain District
Learn About Spittlebugs
Spittlebugs are very good at hiding too so not real easy to spot. The protective covering they make looks like someone placed soap suds on your plant or bush. See the photo that goes with this article. Or perhaps looks like some ill mannered individual even spit on your plant or bush! The spittlebug nymphs make bubbles out of a liquid they secrete from their back ends (thus not really spittle). They get their name due to the foamy substance looking like spittle.
Once the spittlebug has formed up a nice group of bubbles, they will use their hind legs to cover themselves with the foamy substance. The spittle protects them from predators, temperature extremes and helps keep them from dehydrating.
The spittlebug lays eggs on old plant debris and the eggs are left there to overwinter. The eggs hatch in early spring at which time the young attach themselves to the host plant and begin to feed. The young go through five stages before reaching adulthood. Spittlebugs are related to Leaf Hoppers, the adults are 1/8 to ¼ inch long and they have wings. Their faces look a bit like the face of a frog, thus they are sometimes called Froghoppers.
How To Control Spittlebug
Even though the spittlebug young feed on the plants juices, they do little actual damage to the host plant in most cases unless there are huge numbers of them. A quick blast of water from a hose end sprayer will usually knock them off and eliminate spittlebug from the plant they are on.
Large numbers of spittlebugs can weaken or stunt the growth of the plant or bush they are on and in such cases a pesticide may be in order. Common pesticides will work to kill spittlebugs.
To help control spittlebug the following spring, do a good garden clean up in the fall making sure to get rid of as much old plant material as possible. Since the Spittlebug eggs overwinter in the old garden debris a good garden clean up in the fall will limit the numbers that hatch considerably.
Spittlebugs prefer pine trees and junipers but can be found on a variety of plants including rosebushes. Now if you see the sudsy or foaming looking little mass on your trees or plants you will know what it actually may be.
Print This Article - Printer Friendly Version
TweetMore Information:
Didn't find the answer to your question? Ask one of our gardening experts.
Do you know anything about gardening? Help answer someone's gardening question.
Read more articles in Pests & Problems.
You might also be interested in these articles: