A while ago I brought home a lovely bunch of roses. One of those very dark, velvety ones. Picked in a garden, not in a flower shop so I guess I could expect some bugs. Spiders, maybe some aphids..
I did not expect to see this a couple of days later:
Yea... this one made sure I see it :p
Those are Rose Budworms. A very hated pest that can prevent you from seeing flowers you planted. Budworms are moth caterpillars. The adult moth will lay eggs on the plant and when little buggers hatch they will get inside the bud of rose, petunia or other garden flowers and slowly eat the center. When the flower opens, IF it opens, it will look like it was on a war.
After they are well fed they will dig themselves in the soil and slowly transform into a moth and the cycle repeats.
As nasty as they are, have a look how happy they look on those petals!
There was nothing I could do to save the flowers. The buds did open, but they were all damaged. There were two more things to do.
- Check online what are they. Just cause I am curious and I like to know what eat my plants,
- Take tons of photos! As frustrating it was to see what they did, they still looked kind of cute. Walking around and not caring about anything else.
If you don't treat it in time (or hungry birds don't eat them) then all you have left is admire the damage.
Those little nasties ate my roses!!
Peekaboo!
Leaves are safe...
*No bugs were hurt during the photoshoot.
What came after is another story...
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Shot with Nikon D5500 + Sigma 105mm lens
All photos and text are my own.
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