Mulberry Charlotte Russe
Pears, Plums, Quince
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PEA PESTS AND DISEASES
This is one of the main pests of pea plants. You won't notice it until you come to harvest your peas when you will find many of them with an ugly looking muck where the bug has eaten into your peas.
Greenfly insecticides can be sprayed on the plants but the problem is that they need to sprayed when the flowers are open to kill the Pea Moth. But this is exactly the time when pollinating insects will be out and about. So spraying at the correct time will kill pollinating insects.
The best cure for pea moth is prevention, by covering your plants with insect proof mesh. Climbing peas tend to suffer far less from this pest.
A white powdery film covers the leaves and stems. Avoid this problem by incorporating lots of organic matter in the soil before sowing / planting and water well when conditions are dry. Basically, plants under stress are susceptible to powdery mildew so good ongoing care is the best way to prevent it.
We have an in depth article on identifying, preventing and treating Powdery Mildew which can be found here.
PEA LEAF WEEVIL
Pea leaf weevils are small grey beetles around 5cm / 2in long when fully grown. The damage they cause is easily identified. They cut small notches into the edges of leaves.
Pea Leaf Weevil and damage
Courtesy Shelley Barkley, Alberta Agriculture and Forestry
Under normal circumstances the damage caused by pea leaf weevils is tolerated by pea plants with no effect on productivity so it is best to just ignore them. Sometimes young seedlings can suffer badly. If that has happened to you before then cover the young seedlings with insect mesh when you plant them or sow seeds.
Chemical sprays are available available to control these pests, products such as Bug Clear Gun containing pyrethrum are the most effective. Do not apply any chemical sprays when the pea plants are in flower.
COMMENTS / QUESTIONS ABOUT PEAS LEFT BY OUR READERS
Sometimes our readers ask specific questions which
are not covered in the main article above. Our
Pea comment / question and answer page
lists their comments, questions and answers. At the end of that page there is also a form for you to submit any new question or comment you have.