What's eating my echeveria?

Echeveria succulent rosettes are most commonly attacked by mealybugs, which nestle deep between tightly packed leaves where they are invisible until populations boom. Root mealybugs are also a known problem. Vine weevil larvae eat roots in outdoor or greenhouse plants, and aphids occasionally target flower stalks in bloom.

White fluffy wax between leaves, especially at the base of the rosette; leaves yellow and may detach; root mealybugs cause wilting without obvious above-ground symptoms. Remove with alcohol-soaked cotton swabs; spray the whole plant including leaf bases with neem oil solution; if root mealybugs are suspected, unpot, shake off soil, rinse roots, and repot in fresh compost after a neem drench.

Clusters of soft insects on flower stalks and emerging buds; distorted or sticky blooms; heavy infestations weaken the flowering spike. Pinch off infested stalks; spray with insecticidal soap or neem oil; introduce natural predators (lacewings, ladybirds) if growing outdoors.

Creamy C-shaped larvae eat roots, causing the plant to collapse and pull free of the soil easily; adults notch leaf edges at night but root damage is far more serious. Apply pathogenic nematodes (Heterorhabditis bacteriophora) to moist soil in late summer; inspect root balls when repotting and destroy any larvae found; use Provado Vine Weevil Killer (UK) as a soil drench per label.