My harry lauder walking stick in a large pot outside has developed a tent-like web on it. Also half of it has turned brown.
A nearby plant has a similar web and tiny white spots on it.
What pest? How do I solve it?
Extension
Message
From:
Richard Hentschel
Extension Educator, Horticulture
DuPage/Kane/Kendall Unit hentsche@illinois.edu
The browning could be from being grown in a container over a number of years and the root system is no longer able to support the plant with nutrients and water in the way it did while younger. Container plants often will develop girdling roots that choke off portions of the crown where the roots have been circling. You can investigate by probing the soil or carefully digging soil away from the trunk. Container plants rely on us for everything, so if at some point water was lacking, the top growth suffers. The webbing could be from foliage feeding larvae of a moth. I am not familiar enough with insects in California to be of more help. Proper Id of the insect creating the webbing will be the only way to know if treatments are warranted
