ORDER: DIPTERA
Flies, gnats, mosquitos…
DIPTERA
Di: two
Ptera: wings
Complete development
Chewing (larva)
Sponging or piercing sucking (adult)
DIPTERA
WINGS: 1 pair
Front: membranous
Back: stubs
LEAFMINER (Page 166)
• Several hundred species of foliage miners that
can be moths, beetles, flies or sawflies
• Larva: 1/8" maggot
• Adult: 1/8" mosquito-like
LEAFMINER (Page 166)
HOSTS
• Oak, holly, boxwood, juniper, pine…
LEAFMINER (Page 166)
HOSTS
• Oak, holly, boxwood, juniper, pine…
LEAFMINER (Page 166)
HOSTS
• Oak, holly, boxwood, juniper, pine…
LEAFMINER (Page 166)
DAMAGE
• Blotch or tunnel in foliage
• Leaf drop in late summer
• Mainly visual
LEAFMINER (Page 166)
CONTROL
• Healthy plants tolerate
• Resistant cultivars
FUNGAL GNAT
• One generation per month
• Attracted to moist shade and organic
matter
FUNGAL GNAT
HOST
• General feeder
– Many feed on organic matter
• More severe in greenhouse potting soil
• Potting soil sterile
FUNGAL GNAT
DAMAGE
• Larva strips roots
• Loss vigor, wilting
FUNGAL GNAT
• Severe on propagated cuttings
– Limited roots
FUNGAL GNAT
CONTROL
• Clean up debris
• Yellow sticky cards for adults
• Bacillus thuringiensis var. israelensis,
(Gnatrol)
• Drench soil with insecticide
• Predatory nematodes