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Hope It Was Tasty...

15 years ago

Even though I have over 100 Hostas, Maekawa has always been one of my very favorite plants. This morning I went out and it was gone....I guess this was from a cutworm. He also got my Fujibotan, but not as bad...

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Comments (5)

Pieter zone 7/8 B.C.
15 years ago
Sorry about your misfortune.

I guess this was from a cutworm

I would disagree, too much damage for one cutworm to have wrought I'd say, but then I don't think I've ever had to deal with those nasties. If you still have the leaves, take a close look at the bottom of each petiole and try to determine how clean cut they are. I'm thinking this is more reminiscent of rodent damage given the number of leaves.

I'd also take the remaining crown and roots of your Maekawa and pot them up to recover.
ken_adrian Adrian MI cold Z5
15 years ago
i disagree also ...

cutworms turned into whatever they turned into at least a month back ...

unless your cutworms have two long ears and hop around the yard ...

ken
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woodthrush
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Looks like vole damage. If you press on the soil around the plant, is it loose? It will kind of sink in when you press on it if a vole has been tunneling there.
I think the chipmunks chew the stems looking for moisture when it's dry. I've seen them chew different flower stems.
Pam
netcub
Original Author
15 years ago
I did feel all around the plant this morning when i was looking for a worm... It doesnt seem like anything has been tunneling around the plant... the cuts on the leaves were all angled, but didnt look completely clean like a rabbit did it...more like gnawed...but all exactly the same angle. I did however the other day see a rabbit eyeing my hostas...maybe Maekawa just looked the tastiest...and fujibotan was right next to it and had a little damage as well. The only thing im wondering is why they would all be cut off at the base, and not a single leaf was eaten.....Im hoping they dont get the scape on Fujibotan. Ive never seen it blooming before... (Yes, Im easily entertained!) I know it may be late for cutworms, and while I definitely respect everyones advice around here, im still leaning towards some kind of insect doing this. Thanks for the replies!

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