something eating the flower buds

11 years ago

My camellia bush was loaded wiTh buds in all stages of opening. Now most are gone and look like the buds are just cut off. What could be the culprit?

Sort by:Oldest

Comments (5)

jean001a
11 years ago
Size of the buds when they went missing?
Squirrels? Birds? Drought-stress?

Any chance of pictures of a damaged bud?
ozzysboy
11 years ago
Not sure what your area is like, but here (northern VA) we're overrun with deer and they LOVE to gnaw camellias (esp smaller plants) all the way back to the branches--some of my younger camellias get entirely stripped if I don't protect them.
Related Discussions
Something's eating my buds!
Q
Comments (9)
I've had an infestation of little, very pale green, caterpillars chewing up my rose buds this year. I've had the darker green rose slugs on the leaves before, but never these lighter ones on the buds. They have done a lot of damage to my spring flush, mostly on my rugosas, albas and bourbons. I've been hand-picking as much as possible, and hoping that there is only one generation of this particular pest. On another thread someone identified them (or at least something that sure sounded the same) as the larvae of those white or grey moths. They suggested that BT or insecticidal soap might work. Judith
...See More
Help, something eating the tips of my rose buds
Q
Comments (12)
This happens to my roses like 2x a year. I cannot explain what causes them to form this way, but it seems to affect many different varieties and usually around the same time. Some varieties (elegant fairy tale, sugar moon, mr Lincoln)are more prone to it than others. I live in south Fl so cold or frost damage is certainly not the culprit. I read once that too much alfalfa can cause this to happen, and I think there is a coorolation because one year I used copious amounts of Rose Tone (which contains Alfalfa) and that was the year that I had it the worst. (I no longer use rose tone and I've seen a significant decline). Not to say that Rose Tone is bad, I believe it to be a good product, but I used it in pots and perhaps it was too concentrated. Have any if you seen a cooralation between using alfalfa meal and phyllody (or near phyllody) like Hoov says?
...See More
Something's eating holes in my rose buds
Q
Comments (8)
Last year I had the same problem, and it was rose weevils. I killed as many as I could, but they really ruined the bloom on any of the plants that they were on. They seemed to prefer certain rose bushes more than others. I am still waiting for my first rose blooms to open this year, so I will see how it goes. I could not find any way to get rid of them other than hand picking them - and in my opinion didn't work well since I didn't get any decent blooms out of the roses they were on all summer. The holes appeared like small prefectly round holes, with I think a darker edge, possibly from the rose bud wilting around the edge of the hole. Just so you know, the best way to get the weevils is to get a pail with soapy water and hold it under the weevil, as soon as you get close to it it will try to drop to the ground, but instead you catch it in the water and it drowns. There was a link on her last year, since I was asking the same thing!
...See More
something eating rose buds!
Q
Comments (2)
My vote is on black beetles...they look kind of like June bugs, and they eat the buds on my roses all the time, if I don't happen to catch them. They feed on other flowers, too, like sunflowers. They move slowly, and I walk around with a dish of soapy water and pick them off one by one for a swimming lesson. Sometimes you have to look hard to find them. Of course, other things could be at work, but I just noticed the first beetles on my roses last week, so it's the right time for them. Marcia
...See More
jeff_al
11 years ago
sounds like deer to me, too.
some years are worse than others around my yard. they usually don't bother the leaves or branches on mine but they will take almost every flower bud, open or tightly closed, from the shrub.
i have had success in years past by putting out strongly scented bar soap shavings wedged in the branches. have to do that before they discover the flowers, though.
irish spring is a soap i used which kept them away. if you cut the soap pieces large enough, they will stay there through several rains and melt into the branch crotches.
tomkaren
Original Author
11 years ago
No deer here, only squirrels. This plant has been growing here many years and never before been bothered. Have no idea what has changed.
Dave in NoVA • N. Virginia • zone 7A
11 years ago
Squirrels will eat the buds here. I see bits and pieces lying on the deck rails where they 'sit and eat'.

Related Stories

HOW TO PHOTOGRAPH YOUR HOUSE 7 Pro Lighting Tips for Budding Home Photographers

By David Duncan Livingston

Learn how to control daylight and artificial light to get high-quality home photos even if you're just starting out

Full Story

HEALTHY HOME 12 Ways to Set Up Your Kitchen for Healthy Eating

By Becky Harris

Making smart food choices is easier when your kitchen is part of your support team

Full Story

122

GARDENING GUIDES Great Golden Digger Wasp: A Beneficial Flower-Visiting Insect

By Pollination Press LLC

Introducing the great golden digger wasp, a colorful pollinator that also hunts foliage-eating insects

Full Story

CONTAINER GARDENS 7 Deer-Resistant Flowers for Your Summer Containers

By Kim Gamel

Grow these as protection for edibles or just for their colorful beauty — deer might not like them, but everyone else will

Full Story

GARDENING GUIDES Attract Hummingbirds and Bees With These Beautiful Summer Flowers

By Annie Thornton

Roll out a welcome mat for pollinators to keep your landscape in balance and thriving

Full Story

145

GARDENING GUIDES Vegetables and Flowers Mix in Beautiful Edible Gardens

By Margie Grace - Grace Design Associates

Ornamentals, meet your edible garden mates. We know you'll get along just beautifully

Full Story

GARDENING GUIDES 10 Deer-Resistant Native Flowers to Plant This Fall

By Brian Barth

Learn about natives that embrace some kinds of wildlife but resist grazing deer

Full Story

GARDENING GUIDES Oh, Deer! 10 Native Flowers That Stand Up to the Herds

By Benjamin Vogt / Monarch Gardens

Keeping a garden amid hungry deer can be hard, but these plants should fare well

Full Story

FUN HOUZZ Smell This Shocking Flower at Your Own Risk

By Vanessa Brunner

Don't say we didn't warn you: The foul scent of the rare and incredible corpse flower may knock your socks off

Full Story

KITCHEN DESIGN 16 Scrumptious Eat-In Kitchens and What They Want You to Serve

By Becky Harris

Whether apple-pie cheerful or champagne sophisticated, these eat-in kitchens offer ideas to salivate over

Full Story

something eating the flower buds

Comments (5)

jean001a

ozzysboy

Related Discussions

jeff_al

tomkaren
Original Author

Dave in NoVA • N. Virginia • zone 7A

COMPANY

BUSINESS SERVICES

GET HELP

CONNECT WITH US

something eating the flower buds

Comments (5)

jean001a

ozzysboy

Related Discussions

jeff_al

tomkarenOriginal Author

Dave in NoVA • N. Virginia • zone 7A

COMPANY

BUSINESS SERVICES

GET HELP

CONNECT WITH US

tomkaren
Original Author