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Need help with Lilli Pilli infestation

Hello, I would love if anyone could give me assistance in how I can get rid of whatever it is that is destroying the foliage on me Lilly Pilly hedge. There are clumps of leaves covered in like a spiders web in one group. And then I have another group which has lost all its foliage as it is in the shadow of the house.

I have taken samples to my local flower power and one guy said they are spiders and we should let them be and another said to keep spraying eco oil and conguard. But that hasn't helped either. I can't be the only person out there having these problems o would love to hear from anyone as to how they have won the battle.

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Comments

EricL

Hello @Loxton

Welcome to the Bunnings Workshop community. It's wonderful to have you join us and thanks for sharing your question about your Lilli Pilly hedge.

In my humble opinion, it depends on what kind of spider is nesting in your hedge. Spiders are beneficial for gardens, ecosystems, and homes due to their role in controlling pest insects. As key terrestrial predators, they consume tons of pests and small arthropods annually.

However, spider mites are a different problem as they eat the leaves of the plant, and they are not good for its health. You can easily tell if it is spider mites as they are extremely small, literally like mites. Whereas a regular spider is often visible and relatively easy to spot.

I propose focusing on the soil health of the hedge. I suggest aerating the area around the hedge with Saxon Lawn Aerator Sandals and adding Scotts Osmocote 1kg Native Controlled Release Fertiliser. I also recommend having a look at this guide -How to grow and care for a lilly pilly.

Let me call on our experienced members @Noelle and @mich1972 for their recommendations.

If you need further assistance, please let us know.

Eric

Loxton

https://www.workshop.bunnings.com.au/discussion/comment/39857#Comment_39857

Thank you Eric, I will follow your advice. I am interested to hear if @Noelle and @mich1972 have any further tips.

Noelle

https://www.workshop.bunnings.com.au/discussion/comment/39857#Comment_39857

Hi @Loxton

I'm in agreement with Eric's comments regarding spiders - they may inhabit your hedge but they will do no harm. They tend to collect dead material and spin threads to hold it together to form a protective home. The problem may be worse in situations like yours where the trees are very sheltered and not exposed to much sunlight.

The bare stems/trunks close to ground level and up to fence height are also a symptom of too much shade - the trees are growing quite tall trying to get to the light, and as they do they lose leaves on the lower limbs.

As Eric has advised, work on the soi without disturbing their roots and if you can, open up the area so the hedge gets more direct sun.

Loxton

https://www.workshop.bunnings.com.au/discussion/comment/82117#Comment_82117

Thank you Noelle. The problem is that the Lilly pillys are supposed to screen from the neighbouring property and the spiders webs are causing gaps.

EricL

https://www.workshop.bunnings.com.au/discussion/comment/105818#Comment_105818

Hello @Loxton

Removing the spiders at this point will not produce immediate benefits. Plus, it becomes like an open invitation to harmful insects that the guardians of the tree have been removed. I propose giving your trees a chance to flourish by improving soil health. Once they start growing new branches and leaves, you'll get your cover back.

Eric

Loxton

https://www.workshop.bunnings.com.au/discussion/comment/120063#Comment_120063

All advice has been so helpful, thank you.

Noelle

https://www.workshop.bunnings.com.au/discussion/comment/105818#Comment_105818

@Loxton

I agree with Eric, at this stage it is more important to get the trees back on track by improving their overall health. I doubt it is the spider webs that are causing the gaps, rather the trees are struggling through lack of light and poor condition.

ktrassadmin

Hello

i think these are caterpillars not spiders but whatever they are they are hard to see and we have them too in our large trees after our neighbour decided to prune enormous amounts of them and cut a large root that went under the ground and pouring concrete on top, nearly killing them. Then these pests arrived, probably because the trees were vulnerable and they go way up into the trees where we can’t reach and, like you, they were giving us privacy. It is very difficult to find information on these pests, all we’ve ever fund is the suggestion that we remove them but it’s impossible for us without cutting half the tree down. It’s certainly odd that there is little information on them. I don’t know where you are but we are on the central coast. If I. One across more info I will post it here. Just wanted to say you are not alone, the images you put up are exactly the same as what is happening to our trees.

ktrassadmin

https://www.workshop.bunnings.com.au/discussion/comment/48160#Comment_48160

I also want to say that our trees have always been incredibly healthy till our new neighbours decided they wanted to somehow get filtered views through our yard and I think the soil is still really healthy because they absolutely chock full of earth worms. I honestly don’t know what to do about this problem and it is very distressing.

JacobZ

https://www.workshop.bunnings.com.au/discussion/comment/86129#Comment_86129

Hi @ktrassadmin,

Welcome to the Bunnings Workshop community, it is wonderful to have you with us.

I am sorry to hear you are experiencing a similar issue to @Loxton.

If you can get a clearer photo of the insects you are dealing with, this may help our members assist with both yours and Loxton's issue, as at this point, I can't identify what insect is causing the problem.

Do you also have silk-like webbing in your lilly pillies? I note that some caterpillars do produce web like structures similar to spiders' webs.

If you are able to, could you upload a photo of them? Let me know if you need a hand with this.

Hopefully we can help to identify them and offer some solutions moving forward.

Jacob

ktrassadmin

https://www.workshop.bunnings.com.au/discussion/comment/108389#Comment_108389

Thank you Jacob, I’ll do my best to get a photo of them. There is web, I’ll see whether there is silk too.

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