A discovery - the Rhubarb Curculio Weevil

One thing I have learned during this challenge about my Rhubarb crop is that I have a pest in the garden which is responsible for damaging it.  Every year my Rhubarb comes up in February or March looking healthy, but by May it starts looking as if it is too dry or not well-fed.

I had been blaming my poor cultivation practices. However, by researching online I discovered that there is a weevil called a Rhubarb Curculio Beetle, which sucks the sap from the stems and is responsible for a jelly-like substance.  Other surface damage on the stem could be from slugs, but that is not so serious.

Damage from Curculio Weevil - 2024

The host plant for these weevils is the Dock, predominantly Curled Dock, which I have in plenty around the garden. Impossible to rid our large garden of them all.  They don't actually lay eggs successfully in Rhubarb, but they try to.As an experiment, I dug up several plants and put them in pots.  They started to grow well, as the pest was not damaging the stems.  Though later in the season I discovered one or two of them on the Rhubarb leaves! It is clear that they can find them, but I think there's room for optimism.  Though it is difficult to keep Rhubarb in pots, as they need water and lots of food.

It is important to clear up leaf litter around the plants, as they overwinter in it.



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