Deformed leaves on Melaleuca rhaphiophylla

[Rory]

Could be Myrtle Rust

Doesn't appear to be Myrtle Rust Brett.

Does anyone know if thrip can be seen with the naked eye? I have been looking very closely but can't see them or any eggs etc.

Thanks,
Steven

Yes, thrips are tiny little black guys, they can easily be picked off with your fingers if you find them. Mind you, some 70 year olds may have a problem with their 'naked' eye for thrips, but I had them about 10 years ago, and they are a few mm long, so you should be able to easily squish em as well. I eventually eradicated them by sight and squish. But 10 years ago, my collection was a lot smaller. If you haven't seen the thrips already, chances are its not thrips, cause you should be able to see them straight away. They look like teeny tiny leaches.

[Paulneill]

I’m digging up an golden oldie here by the looks of things but I’ve found some valuable info I think may interest some of u. I recently started growing
melaleuca rhaphiophylla and have been frustrated with the deformed growth, I used confidore a few times thinking that would solve the issue but after repotting 3 raphs I was concerned for there health as they were looking hamered with disease
I found this post and recently, tried mavric 4 days ago along with repeated confidore spray applications, weeks ago. Each night I was checking and taking mental notes of the new growth to see if it was holding or turning to shari. Anyway tonight I was laying down beside one tree, having a good look. And I spotted a thrip munching into the new growth. Then I spotted another one. They were both about 9mm long and having a fat time of it. They were even leaving the branch and flying to the next fresh one for more munching. I took a few photos of them before dosing them and the tree with confidore. They fly like a mozzie.
these buggers are very controlled at flying and can come and go as they please. They must be just checking in each night having a feed damaging the cells of the leafs and causing them to curl up . U can see on some of the needles a small 1mm area that’s transparent and the rest of the needle is fine , that must be a freshly munched needle and then when the sun comes out the rest of the needle curls up and because it’s damaged . simple as that. Makes sense as to why there’s no visible eggs or insects and the damage is random. I live near a swampy area with loads of mells so this is probably just the natural order of things here in WA being there natural habitat.
I’m gona give the insecticide pyrethrin a try now and see how that goes.

[Paulneill]

Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

[terryb]

They were both about 9mm long and having a fat time of it. They were even leaving the branch and flying to the next fresh one for more munching. I took a few photos of them before dosing them and the tree with confidore. They fly like a mozzie.
these buggers are very controlled at flying and can come and go as they please.

Oh dear! The photo you have posted is not of thrips and your description also confirms this. Thrips are tiny, definitely not 9 mm long. They also don't fly in a controlled manner as you suggest.

What you have photographed are small wasps, probably predatory wasps which help to keep your pests at bay. Since you live near stands of the these trees, you probably have balanced populations of pests and predators (hopefully). The part of the foliage you show looks very healthy in the photograph, so it is a bit unclear what the damage you mention looks like. You should get a definite ID on insects BEFORE you resort to chemical control to make sure you are actually treating the right pest with the right chemical.

[Paulneill]

Thanks, aww u burst my bubble, though I was onto something. Yea I wonder what those little wasps are doing then?
I also noticed flys sitting on the deformed growth. They must be eating the sap leaking from the deformed foliage? I will get some photos of the deformed growth soon.

[dansai]

I second Terrys id. These are not thrips, and most likely a predatory wasp. Some wasps do cause galls on trees, and an unhealthy tree might be susceptible to being set back by this. Spraying confidor on theses wasps will probably kill them, and even spraying on plants they visit may kill them, but theses are not a "pest" and actually provide benefit by controlling "pest" numbers. Its is always best to positively ID a pest, and only use chemicals when absolutely necessary.

Here is an image of thrips.

[Mickeyjaytee]

Hey guys,

Really interested to see what you come up with in terms of which pest this is and how to treat. I have a few raphs I planted in the garden and they are continually hammered by this pest. It makes growing very slow. I live right near a wetland filled with raphs and have noticed quite a few of them have this problem too.

Cheers!

[terryb]

Really interested to see what you come up with in terms of which pest this is and how to treat. I have a few raphs I planted in the garden and they are continually hammered by this pest. It makes growing very slow. I live right near a wetland filled with raphs and have noticed quite a few of them have this problem too.

Pictures would help

[Mickeyjaytee]

Really interested to see what you come up with in terms of which pest this is and how to treat. I have a few raphs I planted in the garden and they are continually hammered by this pest. It makes growing very slow. I live right near a wetland filled with raphs and have noticed quite a few of them have this problem too.

Pictures would help

The original poster posted pictures of exactly what I have if you were to look there. That’s what my post is in reference to.

Here are my own. It doesn’t seem to affect all of my raphs, just a couple. The unaffected raph naturally is growing at a much faster rate than the afflicted.

I have heard the words fungal thrown around but, spray had no effect. At this stage, if it was to hit any bonsai I wouldn’t know how to cure it

[terryb]

Went back and read the whole thread.

It seems an entomologist has already determined that thrips are the cause. There are hundreds of species of thrips in Australia, so this may be a species specific to this Melaleuca (which is why you don't see the damage on other species). This could be a factor of the oil composition produced by this particular species. Why some rhaps are affected and not others could be a case of health but I'm just guessing.

As suggested, removing and binning the affected foliage will help control thrip numbers. If you want to use insecticide then find a suitable product to minimise knocking down natural predators and pollinators.

[Mickeyjaytee]

Hmmm. I thought they were undecided? Regardless it’s not a bug I can see. I’ve checked a few times over and just can’t see anything at all. I have tried insecticide twice (hate the stuff but was desperate) and it didn’t seem to make a difference.

I might hit up the kings park authority and see if they definitely say it’s thrips.

[terryb]

Hmmm. I thought they were undecided? Regardless it’s not a bug I can see. I’ve checked a few times over and just can’t see anything at all. I have tried insecticide twice (hate the stuff but was desperate) and it didn’t seem to make a difference.

I might hit up the kings park authority and see if they definitely say it’s thrips.

Seeking the help of some professionals is a good move. Would be keen to hear their response.

I didn't put it in my last post but mites could be involved as well. Both of the stated products in the thread also control some species of mite. Again they can be notoriously hard to find. Here is a link to a conversation on pomegranate leaf curling viewtopic.php?p=287686#p287686 which involves a mite. It contains a link to some primary research of mites on Melaleuca. If the link doesn't work, just google the article name if you are interested.

[Mickeyjaytee]

Heya Terry,

Apologies for the late reply! So I sent pictures through to the kings park authority and had Sue McDougall herself look into it. She suggested thrips. She was pretty certain but, she did say to perhaps look into it more so I used the MyPestGuide app which is really helpful. Sadly, they weren’t helpful this time and I received a generic message saying “oh no, your seedling (it’s not even a seedling) looks sick, you need to look after it”

Mites perhaps could be an answer. I’ve recently planted a Angophora coasta tree in my backyard that was doing fantastic. Now however, the new growth is curling and coming out deformed. A tad frustrated but, I’m not too far from the city so I guess I’m in the thick of having pests and diseases.

[terryb]

Hey Mickey,

Thanks for the follow up.

Always hard from photographs, much better if you have a specimen to stick under a microscope. The fact of the matter is that we still don't have a good understanding of the diversity of small organisms in Australia (insects, mites, fungi etc). Most of the effort goes to commercial needs, which is why we know those predators and pests best. The natives generally only get a look in when something catastrophic happens.