Weevil surge prompts spraying

A plant-munching pest with a taste for citrus trees has been spotted in Costa Mesa, prompting state agricultural officials to break out the pesticides.

The California Department of Food and Agriculture plans to spray plants and treat soil at 24 properties on 22nd Street near where root weevils were spotted.

The root weevil, known to scientists as Diaprepes, eats more than 270 types of plants, from aloe to yams. Among its tastes are citrus and avocado trees — two valuable California crops — and landscaping plants such as roses and hibiscus, said Tina Galindo, a senior agricultural biologist with the state agriculture department.

“The bad thing is it feeds on both ends of the plant,” she said. “Eventually it’s going to kill the plant.”

The weevils were found at four places in Costa Mesa in June, after a state-issued postcard on the bugs prompted a property owner to call. A 2005 weevil infestation in Newport Beach was the first sighting in Orange County, Galindo said, but since then the bugs have been found in Huntington Beach and several other Southern California cities.

They don’t fly long distances, but they can be transported in soil or plant waste.

“It’s obviously a serious issue, and it can get out of hand,” Costa Mesa Assistant City Manager Thomas Hatch said, adding that state and county agricultural officials have responded so well that he’s heard no concerns or complaints from residents.

State officials went door-to-door to affected property owners and held a community meeting last week to explain how they’ll eradicate the bugs.

Pesticides will be applied each month for the next six months to kill the adult root weevils, which eat plant leaves, as well as the larva, which burrow into the soil once they hatch, Galindo said.

When root weevils are present, homeowners most likely will notice the damage to plant leaves, said Ron Vanderhoff, nursery manager at Roger’s Gardens in Newport Beach.

If they think they have weevil damage, homeowners can take plants to a garden center or the agricultural commissioner’s office in Anaheim, he said. There’s also a state hotline at (800) 491-1899 to report weevil infestations.