Pests (Wooly Gray Lycia Moth, Caterpillar)

Found two Wooly Moth Caterpillars on my Guava tree. This is the second season I found them on this same tree. They are quite destructive and difficult to find, but easy to know if they are on the tree. 

They drop reddish brown pellets on the ground that are easy to find. 

Wooly Moth Caterpillar.

Wooly Moth.

Pests (Armyworm Moth)

One of the most destructive pests I have found in my garden is the Armyworm Moth. It can eat all the leaves of a small tree in just a day or two. Luckily I found this caterpillar on my Mikan tree quickly and it did not do much damage. When inspecting your plants always look for droppings. Some look like small black specks, like pepper, or more noticable like the dropping of the Armyworm Moth, which look like rabbit droppings. 

Pests (Habu Snake)

I was out preparing my garden for a typhoon when I noticed a Habu snake in my grapefruit tree. It was not that large (50 cm / 1.5 ft), but regardless it is one of the most poisonous snakes in Okinawa. This is my second encounter with a Habu. I called the police and they came and took care of it. 

Passion Fruit (Pests)

Something is stinging my Passion Fruit. I suspect it is a fruit fly, but not sure. I lost about 8 fruit so far. My Passion Fruit are still flowering and I successfully pollinate 5-10 flowers a day, so believe I can afford to loose a few, but if it persists I plan to wrap each fruit to protect them. Stay tuned.

Clay-Colored Leaf Beetle

The Clay-Colored Leaf Beetle loves the leaves of climbers, like Cucumbers, Squash, Pumpkin, Watermelon and even Sweet Potato leaves. They eat the edges and make holes in the leaves and place a lot of stress on the plants. They are painful, but in most small gardens they can be controlled manually. They are not fast flyers and can be caught in mid-flight or swatted, but will return immediately if not terminated. 

Caterpillar

I noticed these little pellets under my Guava tree and knew there was something on my tree eating the leaves. I checked it carefully and could not find anything, but day after day I could see more pellets and more damage to the leaves. 

After more careful inspection I could find a Caterpillar under one of the branches. 

I am not sure what species this is, but it was huge (about 4 inches long). I did not kill it, but rather moved it to a place it would not bother my plants.

Papaya Tree Mealy Bug, Wasp and Sap

Yesterday I wanted to thin out my Papaya fruit to allow the fruit to grow larger and develop a nice shape, but also noticed a lot of ants going up and down the tree which is never a good sign.

The Mealybug lays its eggs on all parts of the Papaya tree, but primarily of the underside of the leaves. They lay up to 600 eggs that develop into nymphs or "crawlers" and go through several moulting stages. The female nymphs have mouths and can stress a tree significantly if they become too prevalent. 

The Encyrtid Wasp is tiny, has no stinger and only lives a few days. It deposits 1-2 eggs in the Mealybug egg sac. The Wasp egg divides into thousands of larvae that consume the Mealybug nymphs. 

Unfortunately, the Mealybug creates a nectar that ants love and in exchange the ants kill the Wash larvae. 

So, after I thinned out the Papaya fruit I decided to wash down the tree with soap and water. I do my best to remove any debris between the fruit and wash the fruit, leaves and branches; unfortunately, Papaya fruit are extremely sensitive and quickly secrete a sap that is slippery and turns into a type of latex, which is extremely itches and if exposed to it long enough will melt your skin, so my finger prints are nearly gone and it is difficult to pickup anything smooth, like a glass. 

The sap is a useful medication and dried to produce a crude Papain. Papain is an enzyme that helps break up proteins and used to soften meat; additionally, it is used in herbal medicine for digestive problems, helps breakup blood clots following surgery, and used in some cosmetics to smooth the skin since the enzyme has the ability to dissolve skin layers. 

Hornworm

For over four months my Sweet Potato plants experienced a pest free life until recently. I started to see the dreaded signs of the mighty hornworm, which are small black pellet like droppings. I checked my plants during lunch, but could not find anything; however, as soon as the sun went down the hornworms came out. I could find over 10. I have a lot of plants and think they can take one or two worms, but not 10 or 15. But now I think my plants will do just fine.