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Tobacco Budworm

Tobacco Budworm

Chloridea virescens

Insectalso: Geranium budworm, Petunia budworm, Chloridea virescens, Heliothis virescens

A caterpillar that bores into the flower buds of geranium, petunia, nicotiana, and other ornamentals, eating the developing petals from inside so the blooms never open. It is often called the geranium budworm for its favorite host.

🔎 How to spot it

The caterpillars are up to about an inch long and vary in color, often matching their flowers, from green to reddish to brown, with fine lengthwise stripes. The adult is a moth with a wingspan of about one and a half inches and light green forewings crossed by pale wavy bands. The clearest sign is small holes chewed in flower buds with dark frass.

🥀 Damage it causes

Caterpillars bore into flower buds and feed on the developing petals and reproductive parts, so buds fail to open or open ragged and full of holes, and seed pods are eaten. When buds run short the larvae also feed on shoot tips and leaves. Geranium, petunia, nicotiana, and tobacco are favored, with roses, snapdragon, verbena, and some vegetables also attacked.

🛡️ Prevent it

Pick caterpillars off by hand, scouting at dusk when they climb up from the base of the plant to feed, since most hide low during the day. Remove and destroy infested buds. Smooth-leaved ivy geraniums are damaged far less than zonal geraniums, and in cold-winter areas removing soil from stored plants helps destroy overwintering pupae.

🧯 If it is already here

Apply spinosad or another labeled material late in the day before larvae bore into the buds, since once inside they are protected. Bacillus thuringiensis works on exposed feeders such as those on petunia but is less effective on geranium where larvae tunnel quickly. Repeat as new buds form through the season.

💡 Good to know

There are usually two generations a year, and the insect overwinters as pupae a few inches deep in the soil, but the pupae are killed by hard freezes below about twenty degrees, so in cold regions it often survives only in warm microclimates near heated foundations. Matching its color to the flower makes it easy to overlook. Treat early, before buds are bored.

🌱 Plants it attacks

239 plants in the library can be attacked by this pest

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For educational and informational purposes only. Pest control advice is general guidance drawn from university cooperative extension sources; always identify a pest positively and read and follow the label on any product before use, especially around food crops, children, and pets.