Are you seeing cars, sidewalks, driveways, or other plants covered in sticky stuff, especially those under trees? This sticky substance, called honeydew, is produced by certain insects that excrete it when they feed on plants. Plant leaves look shiny and honeydew may be so thick that it drips off the leaves onto the ground or other plants underneath. And in some cases, a black, powdery fungus called sooty mold grows on it, causing the plant's leaves to look dirty.
We've written about quite a few of the insects that produce honeydew in our blog, so here is a list of the possible culprits that may be causing the mess this time of year:
Aphids
The hackberry woolly aphid is a major pest on
Psyllids are small insects that suck plant juices. Few of the over 140 native species of psyllids in California ever cause significant damage to plants. However, about 18 exotic species accidentally introduced from other countries can be pests on ornamentals or fruit trees. Some are often controlled by natural enemies; others occasionally require suppression with pesticides. Learn about biology, identification and management of psyllids in a revised UC IPM Pest Note: Psyllids authored by John Kabashima, UCCE Orange County; Tim Paine, UC Riverside; Kent Daane, UC Berkeley; and Steve Dreistadt, UC IPM Program. This publication features color photographs of all the...