What's eating my bridal wreath spirea?

Bridal Wreath Spirea is vulnerable to spirea aphids in spring and Japanese beetles in summer, with occasional scale and leaf roller caterpillars. Deer will browse it when food is scarce. Aphid colonies arrive precisely when the flush of new growth emerges after flowering, making post-bloom inspection critical each year.

Colonies on soft new growth after bloom; leaves curl inward, turn yellow; copious honeydew leads to sooty mold. Remove by hand or water jet; apply insecticidal soap; encourage natural predators such as ladybugs and syrphid flies.

Adults skeletonize leaves in midsummer, leaving brown skeletal tissue and giving plants a scorched appearance. Hand-pick in early morning; apply milky spore to turf; use neem oil spray as a feeding deterrent.

Leaves rolled or tied together with silk, with feeding damage inside; affected shoots look withered. Unroll and destroy affected leaves; apply Bacillus thuringiensis (Bt) spray when caterpillars are small.