Posted: May 17, 2023
This small soft green insect can make a mess of rose leaves. It's called a roseslug, but not a true slug!
Tiny light green roseslugs blend in with the underside of rose leaves.
So, what are roseslugs? They are larvae of sawflies, which are not flies!
Roseslug sawflies (Endelomyia aethiops) are chubby, non-stinging cousins of wasps. Their small larval stage feeds on rose leaves from mid-May through June. The tiny larvae eat the bottom layer of leaves, creating a "windowpane" effect. As they grow larger, they can chew holes through the leaf. Control is easy: blast the lower and upper sides of the leaves with water to knock off the roseslugs. Their bodies are so soft that most will be killed; the rest will not find their way back onto the plant. You can also spray with insecticidal soap. Remember to spray up, then spray down to cover both surfaces of the leaves.
Check the plants again in early August for the second generation of roseslugs.
