What's eating my carob?

Carob's most destructive pest by far is the carob moth (Ectomyelois ceratoniae), whose larvae bore into pods and seeds causing heavy crop losses both on the tree and in storage. Wood-boring beetles attack the trunk and branches. Mealybugs and scales occur sporadically. Use pheromone traps and early harvest to reduce moth damage.

Larvae bore into pods and seeds, destroying flesh and creating entry points for secondary fungal rots; can cause massive crop losses Deploy pheromone traps to monitor flights; harvest pods early before the first generation attacks; remove fallen pods; sanitation and controlled-atmosphere storage; release Trichogramma parasitoids

Adults bore into trunks and main branches, introducing fungal pathogens that cause wilting and die-back Remove and destroy infested wood; keep trees healthy with adequate irrigation and nutrition to resist boring attack; trunk whitewash deters egg-laying

Sporadic sap-feeding on shoots and pods; honeydew leads to sooty mold and can attract ants that protect colonies from predators Apply horticultural oil or insecticidal soap; introduce mealybug destroyers (Cryptolaemus montrouzieri) as biocontrol