Guidance with fig

[patina]

Hi Julian
The Bug is a Curl grub, and they will eat the roots of live trees. I have lost many trees because of them and they are the reason I now use my Diatomite / Zeolite mix instead of soil. I have never had a Grub in my pots since started using it.
They are the larvae of a beetle and they adults lay the eggs on the soil surface and they then grow in the soil.

They will take a year to really damage a tree, and the only way to really get rid of them is to bare root the tree and replace the soil.
If you cannot repot, then Place the pot in a bucket or a tray and fill with water until the soil in the pot is fully submerged and leave them for a few hours. this will drown the grubs.
Repeat every month or so to ensure they are dead.

Ken

Thanks Ken.
Do you think there could be some in my other soil?
I am guessing they came from some cow manure that I got from Bunnings.

I will do the drowning method but its wet and cold today so I'll wait until a sunny day.

Re the soil. What mix is good for figs, I have had a hard time deciphering a lot of the jargon as its all new to me.
Where can I get Diatomite and Zeolite in Sydney, also is this a good mix for pines ect?

Thanks again I appreciate all this help, Its a lot better being able to upload photos and receive information based on the actual issue!

Julian

[kcpoole]

Hi Julian

The beetles will have dropped their young into the soil in the pot itself.

I use Diatomite / Zeolite mix on all of my trees exclusively. https://www.ausbonsai.com.au/wiki/index. ... =Diatomite
Diatomite available from Enfield produce, and Zeolite from Ray Nesci Nursery

Do a search here for Diatomite and you will find heaps of threads already about it

Ken

[coocarch]

I pulled a tree out from beside my shed, it's a large liquidambar that the previous tenants of our house left here when we lived overseas, and I'm letting the grubs eat the bottom layer of the roots. The reason for this is that the roots have grown through fly screen and won't survive with it in their roots, so the grubs will eat away the problem roots and I can just select a new top-layer of roots gradually as it grows. Technically my second collected tree, the first was a little PJ Ficus seedling that was growing out of the brick wall at school, they were turning the wall into a garden bed so I grabbed it before it was thrown out. It's only about 4 cm tall but it's one of my favorites.
Good luck killing your grubs!