Treat now to prevent pecan weevil damage!

Pecan trees are a common site in eastern North Carolina. Unfortunately so is the damage caused by pecan weevil, the most destructive insect pest of pecans. Pecan weevils damage nuts in two ways. First they feed on the young nuts in late summer, causing some to drop early still in their husks and never complete development. Then they lay their eggs inside the pecans still on the tree. Within a few days plump, cream colored grubs hatch from these eggs and begin feeding on the nut. By the time the pecan drops to the ground, the grub has devoured most of the nut, at which point they drill a small hole in the top of shell and crawl out. If you have ever picked up pecans that had a hole in the top of the shell and were empty, or found grubs inside pecans when you cracked them open, then you have experienced pecan weevils. Though their damage will not become evident until later in the year, now is the time to control this pest.

Learn more! Read the rest of the story from Pender County Cooperative Extension: http://pender.ces.ncsu.edu/index.php?page=news&ci=LAWN+91.

Photo Credit: Clemson University - USDA Cooperative Extension Slide Series, Bugwood.org.