Whats eating these leaves? - Ask Extension
Hello! Many of the leaves now emerging in some plants in a friends garden in Royal Oak are being chewed heavily. The plants being eaten are Mullein an...
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Whats eating these leaves? #626941
Asked April 23, 2020, 3:06 PM EDT
Hello! Many of the leaves now emerging in some plants in a friends garden in Royal Oak are being chewed heavily. The plants being eaten are Mullein and mint; they avoid Queen Anne's lace and sage. It started a week or two ago. Insecticidal soap is doing nothing. My friend has looked closely and at various times of day and sees no evidence of bugs. I am wondering if it could be rabbits or other small animals. Thanks so much for any info 
Oakland County Michigan
Expert Response
Hi;
Generally speaking, rabbits tend to avoid plants with fuzzy leaves and strong smells, so I do not think this is rabbits (not to mention they are not eating the other plants you mentioned). The chew marks look like they could be from slugs. Slugs are active at night for the most part. If you put out a shallow dish of beer near the bases of these plants, they are attracted to it and will fall into the dish and drown.
If you discover the problem is slugs, you can sprinkle some sharp material, like crushed egg shells or diatomaceous earth around the bases of plants they are eating. In your case, mullein and mint are very aggressive plants, so you may actually need to control their spread more than worry about the damage that slugs may cause to them? Mullein is quite beautiful and varieties of it are quite popular in formal flower beds in England. But it is a big producer of seeds that spread quite a bit, so cut the stalk off after it blooms. Mint can be controlled by not letting the runners take over.
Good luck to you!
Generally speaking, rabbits tend to avoid plants with fuzzy leaves and strong smells, so I do not think this is rabbits (not to mention they are not eating the other plants you mentioned). The chew marks look like they could be from slugs. Slugs are active at night for the most part. If you put out a shallow dish of beer near the bases of these plants, they are attracted to it and will fall into the dish and drown.
If you discover the problem is slugs, you can sprinkle some sharp material, like crushed egg shells or diatomaceous earth around the bases of plants they are eating. In your case, mullein and mint are very aggressive plants, so you may actually need to control their spread more than worry about the damage that slugs may cause to them? Mullein is quite beautiful and varieties of it are quite popular in formal flower beds in England. But it is a big producer of seeds that spread quite a bit, so cut the stalk off after it blooms. Mint can be controlled by not letting the runners take over.
Good luck to you!
