Chomped on Bougainvillea

[laura moore]

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Something or someone is eating my beautiful Bougainvillea. The leaves are not just nibbled on.. they are chewed until they are barely recognizable. Does anyone have advice? Help Please. I live in Georgia and this plant continues to look robust... just chewed on. It has not bloomed in about 30 days.

[Newt]

Hi Laura,

Sounds like the Bougainvillea caterpillar - Asciodes gordialis. As I understand it can be green or brown. It's a relative of the cabbage looper and is more common than most people think. If you do nothing your plant will recover. If you want to do something, I would recommend using BT - Bacillus Thuringiensis. Many garden centers sell it now or you could get it at a site like this.

http://gardensalive.com/index.asp?bhcd2=1098165746

Newt