Largest Bizzie destroyed by palm weevil

[Palmfan]

This is my 30 foot 17 year old Bismarkia attacked by palm weevil. I only discovered it 2 weeks ago when i noticed the new leaves turning brown and it rapidly declined. I had a pest control company do pesticide and fungicide injections but i caught it too late.

[Palmfan]

I found bore holes just below the leaf base.

[Josh-O]

yikes!!! what are the preventive measures you can take to combat them ? 

[Palmfan]

The experts say systemic pesticides if caught  early enough, but on a tree this size its a gamble. I did use Imadacloprid as a drench once a year, but obviously its not enough. This was a perfectly healthy tree a month ago. I have a pest control company coming over this week to do a systemic drench on all of my 30+ palms in the ground. I also drenched my other Bismarkias with 97% acephate on the crown and the leaf bases. Unfortunately my 30 foot Bismark has to be removed. This is a picture of my tree 3 weeks ago.

[Josh-O]

systemic pesticides are the best way to cure the problem before its a problem   

 

[Josh-O]

I drench my palms every 3 months just as a precautionary measure.

[Walt]

Well,  I believe my bismarckia palm is a goner. The crown of the palm is now leaning on a 45 degree angle from vertical. It still only has the one dead frond, but obviously the structural integrity in the bud area is shot. Little doubt palmetto weevil grubs have all but destroyed it.

The worst part of  palmetto weevil invasion/infestation is that there's virtually no outward signs until it's too late to take remedial action. This morning I applied some more Dominion 2L and also put down some 8-2-12 palm special fertilizer, as I've been told nitrogen helps moves the imidacloprid faster up into the palm.

I  contacted by email (sent my photos) to the University of Florida today about my bismarckia palm. I was told by Tim Broschat Ph.D., that Bismarkia noblis is a favorite host of the palmetto weevil and that all of my remaining eight bismarckia palms may be in danger.

I throughly checked my smallest bismarckia palm that is located only 20 feet away from the suspected infected palm, and I don't see any signs of weevils. I plan to root drench all my bismarckia palm in proximity of the infected palm and hope for the best.

 

 

[Palmaceae]

Evil bugs, that is for sure.

[Carlos Madrid]

Very sad. I hope you don't lose any more. I'm also fighting for the life of my biggest Bismarck (about 15'). I have two nearby that are unaffected so far. Those bugs seem to attack only the stressed palms.

A few others in the neighborhood have been lost too. 

[Zeeth]

Adding to this thread, there was a nice Bismarckia with about 9 or 10 feet of trunk at the USF botanical garden that died from palmetto weevil a few years ago. They've planted a seedling in it's place, but it's unfortunate that this species (which performs as well as a native in Florida) is so susceptible to a native pest. 

[Palmfan]

Walt, From my first time experience with palm weevil, If your getting brown leaves from new growth, its dead already. I was optimistic so i paid a pest control company for systemic injections and fungicide at a cost of $150.00. A day after they treated the tree, the crown started leaning at a 45 degree angle. For those of you who think palm weevils only attack stressed or unhealthy trees, think again. I planted my tree from a 3 gallon pot fertilized 4 times a year with high quality fertilizer and it grew 30 feet in 17 years and was extremely healthy. I had the tree cut down today and the entire crown and 2 feet below was completely hollowed out rotten with a foul smell and full of palm grubs and beetles.

[Palmfan]

The trunk was very healthy except for the crown damage. Holes in trunk were right below the bottom leaf base.

[Kris]

All the visuals seen in this thread are bit painful..I donot know how we are going to safeguard our palms from these Weevil

 

[Eric in Orlando]

That is a shame that Bismarckia is so susceptible to the native palm weevils once they get large. I have seen quite a few specimens in SoFL the last few years dying or dead from the weevils. I have seen a few in this area killed too.

Edited October 20, 2015 by Eric in Orlando

[Tampa Scott]

I have a feeling that the RPW will change the FL landscape forever. I can not count all the washingtonia that have fallen to the weevil in the Tampa area along with the Phoenix palms. Everyday I notice more in the area. I have lost 4 washingtonia, 1 P. dactylifera and 1 P. canariensis and another canariensis still in the battle with the weevil. I have been Treating my 3 Bizzie's heavy this year.   

 

You sure it's RPW? I've seen a lot of bizzies get killed by the native palmetto weevil, but most of the date palms and Washingtonia that have been dying around the Tampa area have been from Texas palm decline, which is related to LY but has different hosts. 

You are right as it is the native weevil that is on the attack. I have been on a schedule for the injections for the Texas palm decline for 2 yrs now. The P. carnariensis was removed yesterday and was full of the grubs and ready to emerge beetles. The grubs and ready to emerge adults were dead so the treatments had worked, but a bit to late.   

Edited October 20, 2015 by Tampa Scott

[Tampa Scott]

• After seeing all of the weevil destruction  on the Bizzies in this thread I gave my 30'+ Bizzie another dose of imidacloprid.       

Edited October 20, 2015 by Tampa Scott

[Walt]

Palmfan: I only had the one dead frond (and still do), yet the entire upper center crown has collapsed and leaning on a 45 degree angle to the S.W. In fact, I noticed this angle (but it was less) the day I first posted my first pics. However, the prevailing N.E. winds we've been getting for the past several days caused the crown to lean farther. So, all the root drenching  I did is for naught.

I'm going to purchase a couple of bottles of Dominion 2L and root drench my other bismarckias in proximity of the infected one. Two of them are small enough that I could fully inspect them from the bud area down. I don't see any signs of weevils -- yet. Hence, I'm going to root drench and crown drench these two small palms. My largest bismarckia has about 13 feet of clear trunk, and there's no way for me to access the bud area. A root drench will have to suffice.

Here's a photo I took this morning showing the leaning crown indicated by red arrow. Note the dead frond has moved it's position from the first photos I posted.

This is surreal! Palmatiermeg posts a photo of her palmetto killed bismarckia palm, and unbeknownest to me I have a dead one!

 

 

[Phoenikakias]

That is a shame that Bismarckia is so susceptible to the native palm weevils once they get large. I have seen quite a few specimens in SoFL the last few years dying or dead from the weevils. I have seen a few in this area killed too.

At least for SoFl there are some reliable and equally if not more beautiful substitutes for Bismarckia from the genus Copernicia. And fortunately, VERY fortunately, for Florida it misses the other plague that rages here, namely the Paysandisia. NO FAN PALM, ESPECIALLY THE LIVISTONA spss, IS SAFE FROM IT!!!!!!

[Walt]

Tampa Scott: ImidaPro 2SC as the very same amount of imidacloprid (21.4%) as Dominion 2L. I'm wondering if they are both manufactured by the same company (not that it matters). I just find it very coincidental that both products have exactly the same percentage of active ingredient.

[PalmatierMeg]

Walt, I am so sorry this pest has destroyed one of your Bizzies, too. Your grove of silver Bismarckias was an inspiration to me. Tomorrow, my husband & I are going to drench and treat the crowns of our remaining 7 Bizzies. We use Merit 75% imidacloprid powder at 1/2 tsp per 2.5 gallons. One 2 oz. bottle makes 100 gallons. I use several bottle per year to treat all my plants.

[DoomsDave]

OUCH, Meg, all of you that hurts to see.

The trouble with bug killers is you have to keep using them, and, eventually, bugs often develop resistance.

I'd nudge the universities with plant explorers to explore the weevil's native stronghold and find out how they keep from running amok there.

This type of thing has happened before, including with Cottony Cushion Scale, Eugenia Psyllid and others. Bug killers just didn't do it; the bug eaters did.

 

[Walt]

Walt, I am so sorry this pest has destroyed one of your Bizzies, too. Your grove of silver Bismarckias was an inspiration to me. Tomorrow, my husband & I are going to drench and treat the crowns of our remaining 7 Bizzies. We use Merit 75% imidacloprid powder at 1/2 tsp per 2.5 gallons. One 2 oz. bottle makes 100 gallons. I use several bottle per year to treat all my plants.

Meg, The crown on my bismarckia is now lying on a 70 degree angle from verticle. I called my palm trimmer (local tree trimmer company) and he's coming out in the morning to give me an estimate to take it down and dispose of it. Also, he's going to cut down and remove a mature queen palm in my front yard that is dying from ganoderma butt rot. He told me he just recently removed two large bismarckia palms, both dead from weevils. He said the customer had three bismarkia palms in his yard. He removed one of them and then a second one a month later. I don't know the status of the third one.

Today I bought two 27.5 ounce bottles of Dominion 2L, which contains 21.4% imidacloprid. The label calls out to use between 0.1 to 0.4 ounces for trees for every inch of trunk diameter at breast height. I didn't measure my bismarckia palms (they vary in trunk diameter) but estimate they are about 20"-24" at breast height. I know last year I measured my two largest ones at ground level and they were 31" and 32" respectively.

Anyway, I put down several pounds of 8-2-12 palm special fertilizer, then I root drenched the other five bismarckia palms close to the dying one. The nitrogen in the fertilizer, as per manufacturer, should facilitate the uptake of imidacloprid.

I used about 5 - 6 ounces of Dominion 2L, mixing it with two gallons of water per ounce for my root drench for each palm. But I also sprayed on more water with a hose to first wet the ground for better capillary action and to activate the fertilizer. That ratio puts me about in the middle of the manufacturer recommendations. I may apply some more just to be on the safe side.

I plan to root drench again in 6-8 weeks. I may have to do this indefinitely. I'm willing to incur the cost of the Dominion 2L and the time and labor to do this if it will prevent weevils from killing the five remaining bismarckia palms in my back yard. If I lose the other three located here and there in other areas of my property, so be it. The bismarckia palms in my back yard are my wife's favorites, and she's as saddened as I am to have lost just this one.

What I find so ironic is that I discovered my dying bismarckia as a direct result of responding to you initial posting. I went outside the next morning to check more closely on mine and was horrified to see that dead frond!

 

[PalmatierMeg]

Walt, we drenched the ground around our 7 Bizzies with Merit, also poured another insecticide into the crown of each, as they are still short enough to reach without a ladder. Will probably do it all again in a few weeks. Time will tell if they will escape infestation. However, we have begun to contemplate replacement plants to shield the coming electrical substation across the street should the worst happen.

Kind of a tough year on "0.61 Paradise Acres" what with losing all our queens and mules to fusiarum wilt and now a huge Bizzie to palm weevils.

[Palmfan]

Walt, Sorry to here about your Bismark. If your crown is leaning, i suspect the entire crown is rotted. As soon as the crown collapsed on my tree, i knew it was a goner. At that point i was just breeding weevils that could attack my other trees. The good thing is that it wasn't ganoderma and i can replace, probably another Copernicia.I am not going to plant anymore Bismarks. I also am going to treat my remaining Bismarkias with 75% Imidacloprid once a month. 

[Walt]

Walt, we drenched the ground around our 7 Bizzies with Merit, also poured another insecticide into the crown of each, as they are still short enough to reach without a ladder. Will probably do it all again in a few weeks. Time will tell if they will escape infestation. However, we have begun to contemplate replacement plants to shield the coming electrical substation across the street should the worst happen.

Kind of a tough year on "0.61 Paradise Acres" what with losing all our queens and mules to fusiarum wilt and now a huge Bizzie to palm weevils.

Meg: I bud drenched my smallest bismarckia (and root drenched it, too) as I could access it standing on the ground. My next to smallest bismarckia (and the best shaped and colored) I needed an 8-foot step ladder to get up to where I could drench the bud. The other three bismarckia are too tall for me to access. I never dreamed I would lose one of my bismarckia palms to palmetto weevils. This is first for me -- and hopefully the last! As far as planting any more bismarckia palms, I have many small ones in post I grew from seed from my own palms, plus some green form that I grew from seed a friend gave me. But I have 100s  of bismarckia seedlings growning all over my back yard.  They are worse than queen palms. My property will be naturalizing bismarckia palms before long. They are almost invasive.

[Walt]

Walt, Sorry to here about your Bismark. If your crown is leaning, i suspect the entire crown is rotted. As soon as the crown collapsed on my tree, i knew it was a goner. At that point i was just breeding weevils that could attack my other trees. The good thing is that it wasn't ganoderma and i can replace, probably another Copernicia.I am not going to plant anymore Bismarks. I also am going to treat my remaining Bismarkias with 75% Imidacloprid once a month.

Palmfan: When I saw your large bismarckia go from healthy looking to near death and cut down in a span of just three weeks, it sickened my stomach. It must be heart breaking, a loss like that. I would think a bismarckia palm of that size, if one had to buy it and have it delivered and planted, the cost would have to be in the several thousands of dollars.

I could hardly believe how fast my palm went down. One day I see a dead frond -- the next day the crown partially collapses. Today it had collapsed even farther.

I measured the clear trunk (beneath the cut off frond bases) on my dying bismarckia palm this afternoon, and it measured 12'-4". I also measured the clear runk on my largest bismarckia and it measured 14'-8". I estimate the overall height to be close to 30 feet. I surely don't want to lose this palm or any of the others for that matter. I'm hoping the imidacloprid gets taken up soon in my palms. Then, I will try to maintain an effective level of imidacloprid by follow-up root drenchings.

I will post back with photos once my bismarckia is cut down.

[Palmfan]

Walt, It also sickened me to lose that tree. It was the tallest that i had seen around. I was more worried about it getting hit by lightning. I lost a Royal palm 2 years ago to lightning.  I have heard of palm weevil around (none in my neighborhood that i have seen) but never thought it would happen to my tree. I take care of my trees. Fertilize, spray, never cut healthy leaves etc. None of my neighbors take care of their trees or yards and they always over prune their queen palms with a hurricane cut. So far this weevil problem has cost me $1000 between the tree injection, systemic drenching of all my palms, cutting down the tree and stump grinding. I am also going to purchase traps and lures for my property. Hopefully staying on top of the situation with monthly Imidacloprid drenchings of the roots and crowns and trap usage will take care of it. I am curious to see what your crown looks like after it is cut down, the amount of damage to my tree was unbelievable.

[mnorell]

This scientific paper on the many natural enemies of Rhynchophorus spp. is extremely interesting and contains a lot of very promising ideas for controlling the various species. 

[DoomsDave]

This scientific paper on the many natural enemies of Rhynchophorus spp. is extremely interesting and contains a lot of very promising ideas for controlling the various species. 

All is not lost!

Mr. Grim Reepah, suh, yew are held at bay for another day . . . .

[topwater]

According to teh google, Rynchophorus' range extends from South Carolina to south Texas.  Please fix this Florida, I don't want to grow dicots. 

[Bazza]

Just scanned through the thread briefly and wanted to convey my condolences to those who lost (and/or are in the process of losing) their Bizzies.

I can relate as I lost 3 of mine this year - two of which I planted 10 years ago from 45 gallon containers and were quite large signature trees in my front yard.

To be honest, although I tried to save them with various insecticides and cultural endeavours....I was tired of dealing with the messy flower and fruiting branches anyway and was after removing them I gained space for two new palms - a large FG Livistona saribus and a 65 gallon Bottle Palm, so perhaps a silver lining (?)

Regarding control of the Palmetto Weevil.....you may want to consider the beneficial (parasitic) nematode known as Steinernema carpocapsae. Here is one supplier - (no affiliation).

I've been in the green industry for many many years and the Palmetto Weevil problem is worse now than ever before. The Bismarck used to be one of my go-to signature palms to use in my landscape designs but unfortunately I am now reluctant to include them in future projects.

Good luck to all - I still have one Bismarck and one CID left on my property - for now. Very sad and frustrating situation.

Couple pics from '08 couple years after planting - my front yard was anchored by my Bismarcks....

 

 

 

 

 

Edited October 23, 2015 by Bazza

[Bazza]

 

 

 

[Bazza]

 

 

I cut up the trunks for easier removal and look who landed on one of them within' a couple hours....

 

[Bazza]

Down the street another Bismarck which was to be relocated died after being root pruned by a friend of mine in the business....I took a pic of a weevil with a point and shoot camera while standing on the ground next to it...terrible!

 

[BS Man about Palms]

Bummer to read all this... Out here Bismarkias biggest enemy is from below... the gophers love to chew right through the roots, and up the center to finish up at the palm heart. I have seen Bizzies with 3 feet of trunk collapse with a big tunnel right up the middle.

 

Poor Bizzies, just too appetizing! 

[Josh-O]

I pray we don't get these bugs in any numbers out here in california. This is a depressing thread to read but also very informative one.

[Mohsen]

Really sad to see the fate of all beautiful Bizzies...I can understand you all perfectly...I just plant a small one 1 month ago and even now I cant think it might happen to it...

Probably it is too soon for me to worry as none of my palms don't even have a trunk yet (There are many CIDPs around though) ...But I am curious to see if we have the same beasts in Australia or specially in Sydney...?

Today I was cleaning the pool and I notice a small bug and I thought maybe related to palm weevils??I don't think so but I want to be sure ...

[DoomsDave]

Mohsen, your bug looks like a type of scarab beetle, which is totally different from the palm weevils.

[Mohsen]

Thanks Gave...so I killed an innocent one

[Phoenikakias]

Scarab beetles are good and beneficial workers in the soil, but they die easily and first when applied chemicals against rpw