A garden would be so beautiful if there weren't always insects attacking it. Clematis is at the top of the vine weevil's menu.
What is a vine weevil?
This is a black beetle about one centimeter tall, which is mainly active at night. If you discover feeding spots on your clematis, then you should arm yourself with a flashlight at dusk and go in search of this plague. If you spot the beetle, you can carefully collect it. It is important that you do not touch the leaves beforehand, because he is very jumpy and can easily fall. By the way, he can't fly away.
The larvae of the vine weevil
The larvae of the vine weevil are particularly harmful. This annoying bug lays its eggs on the bottom of the plant. The larvae then live in the soil and feed on the roots. And that damages the clematis even more. The older larvae can even work their way through to the main root and damage it.
Nematodes help
Nematodes help against both the beetle and the larvae. These are roundworms that you can use to protect plants. These worms are just 0.1 millimeters in size and can therefore get into the vermin through the body openings and the skin. There they deposit a type of bacteria that is dangerous for vine weevils, which eventually kills them.