This is my first year dealing with these little rapscallions. A week or so ago I notice what looks like frost damage on the tip of a cola. As I go in to remove it I realize one of the little bastards had chewed through the stem, causing the dead cola tip. He wasn't far from the scene of the crime, tried to make a crawl for it, but I brought him to justice.
Since then I have pulled out three more, finding them by looking for abnormal bud/leaf death. Lost about 5-6 dry grams removing the affected growth.
One of the earlier maturing strains I pulled out a week ago was riddled with mold, but no worms, just the shit strewn tunnels they left behind, coursing through the molded areas. Threw out about a dozen grams. Sadly, I think the perps might have escaped judgement in this case.
Anyways, just a heads up to those that have even less experience with the little bastids than me; If you notice strange localized bud death, start digging in.
I posted in this thread a few weeks ago, about the lack or absence of bud worms in my area. Seems I jinxed myself, though I think my bud worm issues are far less dire than in most parts of the world, from what I hear and read. Especially when I use no BT or sprays of any sort.
I would still like to know just what species of moth or butterfly these bud worms typically are, if anyone has any idea.