Protecting your plants from harmful pests is critical for maintaining their health and appearance. Our Pest Management service follows an Integrated Pest Management (IPM) approach that focuses on the least invasive and most sustainable methods for controlling pests. We identify specific pest species and assess their impact on your plants before recommending targeted treatments. These may include biological controls like beneficial insects, organic insecticides, or cultural practices that discourage pest infestations. By managing pests responsibly, we maintain the health of your landscape while minimizing harm to beneficial organisms and the surrounding environment.
As the saying goes, the best defence is a good offense. Keeping your plants healthy is the key to ensuring that these destructive pests stay away from your yard in the first place, as stressed plants emit chemicals that are attractive to adult borers looking to reproduce. Fresh wounds are attractive entry points for egg-laying adult females, so take extra care to avoid any damage to your ornamentals when doing routine yard work like mowing or pruning.
Common Pests
Borers
Borers are a type of destructive pest that cause damage to certain trees and woody shrubs, resulting in potentially devastating infestations. As adults, borers are winged insects (either moths or beetles) that utilize vulnerable timber in their breeding cycle. After mating, females lay their eggs on the bark of an unlucky plant host. Upon hatching, these borer larvae burrow beneath the bark in search of food—devouring the tree’s carbohydrate-rich cambial layer, which transports water and nutrients throughout the tree. Stripped of its conductive tissue, an infested tree can die within just a few weeks of initial contact if it’s not treated quickly!
Two prominent borer pests in South-East Queensland are the Eucalyptus Longhorned Borer (Phoracantha semipunctata) and the Poinciana borer (Agrianome spinicollis). Both species belong to the longhorn beetle family (Cerambycidae) and can absolutely devastate the trees within your garden when left unchecked.
Plant Lice
Psyllids, often referred to as plant lice, are small insects that affect a wide variety of plants, including both cultivated species and ornamental trees. In Brisbane, psyllids are a significant problem, as they feed on the sap of plants, causing leaf distortions, yellowing, and stunted growth. Species such as Psylla australis, can also transmit plant diseases, including viruses and bacteria, from tree-to-tree which further worsens the damage.
Due to Brisbane’s subtropical climate, which provides ideal conditions for their reproduction, psyllids are particularly prevalent during the warmer months. Managing these pests typically involves the use of insecticides, though biological control methods such as introducing natural predators is also recommended to minimize environmental impact.
Most infestations can be dealt with in a few different ways, all of which are easy to do at home.
Two prominent borer pests in South-East Queensland are the Eucalyptus Longhorned Borer (Phoracantha semipunctata) and the Poinciana borer (Agrianome spinicollis). Both species belong to the longhorn beetle family (Cerambycidae) and can absolutely devastate the trees within your garden when left unchecked.
Control Methods
Natural Predators
Introducing or encouraging natural predators is the most sustainable approach to dealing with an infestation. Psyllids are predated upon by many small bird species and other insects. Ladybugs, lacewing larvae, and predatory beetles feed on adult psyllids and can help control their population. To deal with the larvae, certain parasitic wasps such as Tamarixia or Trichogramma are an excellent solution to wiping out entire colonies of Psyllids. These wasps lay their eggs inside the Psyllid larvae which eventually kills them.
Insecticides
Insecticides that contain imidacloprid or pyrethroids are a very effective solution in controlling psyllid outbreaks. These insecticides are absorbed by the plant and target the insects as they feed on it. It’s important to follow the instructions indicated on the product to avoid overuse as too much insecticide could have disastrous consequences on the plant.
Cultural Control
Pruning infested branches and leaves is an effective solution to preventing a greater outbreak of Psyllids but is only effective if it’s caught early. When looking for signs of an infestation keep an eye out for discoloured or curled leaves and lerps (they look like pimples on the surface of the leaf) to determine whether the branch needs to be pruned.
Some plant species are also more resistant to psyllid infestations then others and therefore it’s worth looking into planting resistant plants instead where possible. Finally, ensuring that your plants remain healthy by keeping them well-watered, fertilized and stress-free significantly improves its ability to tolerate pest damage.
Note: This list is not exhaustive, we have included many of the most common garden pests however a full and comprehensive list can be found at the; Queensland Government’s Official Pest and Disease website.