Vine weevil

[mysteryduck]

So we found some weevil. Probably. In some pots my partner was clearing over the weekend. We grew toms, chillis, and strawberries last year in pots on the decking, but due to reasons, didn’t clear them out (or the rest of the garden) until now. Anyway, some of these pots (not checked the strawb pot yet) were full of vine weevil. We binned the compost. But likely there are more grubs we haven’t found yet. Like in the strawb pot, which google says they like. Anyway, we’ve ordered nemotodes and plan to water them into the remaining pots (lavender and magnolia stellata for example).

Question is: are vine weevil common? As common as worms, wasps and butterflies? Are they actually in every garden? Does everyone get them sooner or later or are we unlucky? Now that we have them are they likely to leave if we stop growing plants they like? Or are we likely living in a weevil area? They say you should keep going with the nemotodes, since once they kill the weevil, their natural predators leave — making it easy for weevil to return. Has anyone successfully got rid of weevil? Is this a big standard weevil situation and nothing to bat an eye lid over? Is this a rookie mistake — inevitable if you leave dead plants in pots near dead strawbs over winter? Or should I panic (in moderation)? What are your weevil stories?

[Nannysally99]

Vine weevils stopped me growing strawberries sadly

[nickdub]

I think most times vine weevils are introduced by buying in or receiving as gifts pot plants which are already infected.


I found some in my one greenhouse a few years ago and introduced a scorched earth policy to deal with them. It took going through all the pots I had over about 2 years to try to eliminate them - I haven't seen any for the last few years, so fingers crossed my plants are now clear.

[rary]

If vine weevil is present in a garden they are usually found in pots of compost as they don't like going over gritty soil etc. if the pots you are going to treat will not be used for edible plants you could use one of the chemical treatments against them, which are a lot cheaper and lasts longer than the nematodes, if you have special plants use strawberries as a sacrificial plant against them

[fishpond]

Remove the plant from the pot, soil and all.
Drown the plant and attached soil in a bucket of water for 12 hours.
Remove plant from water, remove any soil attached to roots.
Have a look in the bottom of the bucket, you should see dead Vine Weevil grubs----'cause they can't hold their breath for 12 hours or more.
Repot the plant in fresh compost.
If you have Chickens/birds, they just love a freshly drowned vine weevil grubs.(so do wild birds).

Cost effective, efficient, no chemicals.
Note :-
Do not leave the plant drowned for longer than 24 hours as you may also kill the plant.

[DannyK]

Vine weevils are everywhere.

What do you mean by binning compost? Mine goes into compost bin.

Robins love the grubs. They'll even take them from your hand.

Keep an eye on plants like bergenias for the leaf notching. As soon as I see it I give them a spray with a systemic to hit the adults. Despite not flying adults turn up in the oddest places indoors.

I've given treating all my pots as it's so time consuming.

[Martin H]

I found quite a lot of vine weevils in my chrysanthemum pots this winter. I think they originated from a rose in a pot that was a gift a couple of years ago.

I've spread the compost out between ornamentals for robins and blackbirds to go through. I'm using all fresh compost this year, except I might try drowning potted rose and fuchsia.

[mysteryduck]

Thank you all for your stories. My new plan of action then will be to grow no strawberries this year. Empty the remaining pots ASAP, to check for grubs. Wasteful as it sounds, if any are spotted the compost shall go in the waste bin to prevent spread (I read this in other weevil related forum posts). Any small plants will be repotted in new compost. The bigger magnolia will get a chemical treatment. The three small apple trees, I’ll try to get their roots checked, otherwise they’ll get nemotodes.

Questions: presumably all of this needs done ASAP, before the grubs turn into adults. Is that in April? With the warm weather, are any likely to have turned already? I’d like to wait until the weekend. Would it be likely that they might have come in from a neighbours garden? Or to they tend to not move around so much? Should I nemotode the ground soil, or are they unlikely to be there? Can I grow tomatoes in pots this year? My plants aren’t ready to go out yet, but when they are should I nemotode that soil first? I have some pots of soil that appear to be clean, if I put that on the ground will that be safe enough, or should I treat it with chemicals / nemotodes? Is it safer not to grow anything in pots at all this year? Does that mean I shouldn’t grow potatoes in bags either? And will my peas be relatively safe in the ground?

[fishpond]

Do not get paranoid about Vine Weevil grubs, there are worst things lurking out there that have not woken up yet!
Vine Weevils are very easy to control, some pests & diseases are not so easy.
Just do not make the mistake of mistaking friend for enemy.
Have fun!

[DannyK]

Sending the compost to landfill is a waste. As fishpond says, don't get paranoid. Put it in the compost bin or failing that a green waste bin. You could just bag it up in old compost bags for a few months for the grubs to die of starvation.

[nickdub]

I stuck my larvae infected compost in a water filled barrel for 6 months before re-using it.

[rary]

I wouldn't apply nematodes just yet as I don't think the temperatures are high enough for them, but check that out before buying them, and cover the soil of any pots you plant with gravel, and submerging your existing pots in water for several hours is a good suggestion though fishpond recommends removing the plant and soil from the pot

[Jungle Jane]

A couple of times I’ve had an adult vine weevil on my kitchen ceiling,never killed them because I didn’t know what it was,they’ve never bothered me I don’t know why? Maybe they search for strawberry pots to lay eggs? I’ve had broad bean & young brussel sprout leaf edges eaten by them early spring nothing destroyed,they must get hungry for the leaves early spring. I’ve never noticed any roots affected by the grubs & never needed to control them,they’ve never affected tomatoes,potato plants. I did many years ago have strawberries in pots but now they’re all in the ground & never been affected by vine weevil (I did have sawfly once but got rid of all plants for a year & I’ve not seen them since,plus relocated the bed).

[mysteryduck]

I guess half the battle is knowing what to panic about! Thanks again for all of the advice!

I'm sure I read somewhere that the soil should be destroyed, but I can't find it now. Maybe my panic fuelled mind dreamt it. If only insects were cuter, they wouldn't be so scary! Regardless, I shall attempt to tackle this problem with a proactive, but relaxed attitude

Thanks again..