What's eating my endive?

Endive (Cichorium endivia) shares pest pressure with other salad leaves. Slugs and snails are the dominant threat, feeding on the tender inner heart leaves, which also makes the crop unmarketable. Aphids colonise the heart and transmit viruses. Flea beetles pepper outer leaves with tiny holes, and leafminers leave pale tunnels.

Irregular holes in outer and heart leaves, especially in wet spells; silvery slime trails; worst damage at the unmarketable heart Use iron phosphate slug pellets; set beer traps; scatter crushed eggshells around plants; hand-pick at dusk; avoid overhead watering in the evening

Colonies in the leaf heart are hard to wash off; honeydew promotes sooty mould; transmits endive mosaic and lettuce mosaic virus Blast off with water in early morning; apply insecticidal soap; companion-plant with marigolds or nasturtiums to attract aphid predators

Tiny round shot-holes in outer leaves from adults feeding; worst on young transplants; plants recover once established Use fine mesh row cover or fleece immediately after transplanting; sticky yellow traps; apply diatomaceous earth around seedlings

Larvae tunnel pale, winding galleries through leaf tissue; damaged leaves are unsightly and unsaleable Remove and destroy mined leaves promptly; use yellow sticky traps to catch adults; avoid insecticides that kill parasitoid wasps