Erez Ben asked: Can anyone help identify these grubs. They came out of a pot with a chilli plant in it.
Horticulturist Brian Answers: Those strange juicy looking things are called Curl Grubs and they do quite a bit of damage to plants especially if they are in a pot.
They are so called because the ‘C’ shape they form when found as they curl up. They usually have 6 legs and a white/cream body and are the larvae stage of black beetles. Whilst there is thousands of native Scarab beetles in Australia, the ones that damage your lawn and pot plants are generally introduced species from Africa and Argentina. These chunky larvae get that way by eating the roots of your lawn or plants. The adult female beetles lay eggs in soil which hatch and become these curl grubs.
If you have brown patches in your lawn, try lifting the turf in that area and you will very likely find it can be rolled back easily because the roots have been eaten. Birds are attracted to them so if you see large birds like magpies pecking at the ground it usually means there is curl grubs underneath.
To control curl grub there are granular insecticides that you can sprinkle across your lawn or pots and water them in. It is effective but it has lead to the poisoning of a lot of birds who then eat the curl grubs that come to the surface.
An organic alternative is to use Eucalyptus Oil and Tea Tree Oil.
Australian company Amgrow makes a great product for this purpose that also has fertiliser and wetting agents to help your lawn and plants get water and nutrients. Professor Mac 3 in 1 Organic insecticide is available at the Aussie Gardener Store as a 1litre concentrate or a 2litre hose on. It is non toxic to use and smells great too.
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