The past few years had seen the steady decline of the health of many of the rhododendrons and azaleas in my garden.  Leaf edges cut out, stippling of leaves, leaf drop – instead of green and robust, my rhodies looked increasingly sad.  I knew they were being attacked by bugs of some sort but wasn’t sure exactly what or how to control them.  From the evidence, what I was likely dealing with were weevils and lace bugs.  To stop them had to be non-toxic.  Not just for the bees, as I’ve discussed elsewhere on this site, but for ground and surface water protection, too.  Insecticides are among the many pollutants that run off into the waters off our coast harming shellfish, salmon, and the iconic orcas atop the food chain there.  So, I tried spraying the undersides of the leaves with bursts of water, soapy water, and neem oil, each of which produced small victories, but didn’t win the war. I gave my best efforts to Integrated Pest Management, with mulch, adequate watering and fertilization.  Still, the decline continued. 

This year, I tried something different and with much better results!  Called Tanglefoot, it’s a sticky coating that captures bugs and stops them from feasting. Knowing that timing is everything if I wanted to protect the new leaf growth that occurs annually, I applied the stuff earlier this year in late winter before the bugs emerged in the spring.  Thanks to the winter dormancy of surrounding plants, it was also easier at that time of year to get to the base of all the rhodies to paint on the enormously sticky stuff.  And when I say “sticky,” I’m not kidding you, that stuff is REALLY sticky. Wear gloves! A few other pointers are summarized in the Application Tips section below.

Last year, new growth almost instantly turned silvery yellow. But this year, the rhodies and azaleas are covered in green, healthy leaves again. So nice to see! The Tanglefoot has definitely controlled the weevil population and seems to have impacted the lace bug infestation so far, too.   Yay!

 Application Tips:

• In the Pacific Northwest, plan to apply the Tanglefoot in late winter or early spring on a warmish day before new leaf growth occurs.  If it’s too cold, it may be difficult to brush on the material.

• Because weevils crawl up from the ground to get to their meals, the Tanglefoot should be applied around the trunk of the shrub and any branches that touch the ground.

• Do not paint the Tanglefoot directly onto the shrub, but rather on a band of painters’ tape that you’ve applied first. Doing so makes for a cleaner application and is better for the shrub.  The tape can also be easily removed later which helps when it’s time to make future applications; and, even though it’s kind of gross, it enables you to see what critters got “tangled.”

• Wear gloves. That stuff is quite sticky.

• Have some water-less cleaner, baby oil or mineral spirits on hand before you start. Trust me, even if you wear gloves, you’ll need it for clean-up.