What's eating my european beech?

European Beech (Fagus sylvatica) is most seriously threatened by the felted beech coccid, a scale-like insect that creates white woolly patches in bark crevices and opens trees to fatal beech bark disease. Caterpillars, squirrels stripping bark, and deer browsing are the main additional threats, especially on young or bonsai specimens.

White woolly felt in bark cracks; entry point for Neonectria fungi (beech bark disease); bark cankers, bleeding patches, and dieback Scrub off infestations with a stiff brush; apply winter horticultural oil to smother nymphs; avoid bark injuries; remove and destroy heavily cankered limbs

Holes in developing buds and leaves in spring; heavy infestations can strip all foliage by early summer Fit sticky grease bands around the trunk in October to trap females; spray with Bt or spinosad at bud burst if populations are high

Bark stripping on branches in early summer when sap is high; loss of limbs above the ring-barked area; also removes beech mast Tree guards on trunks; metal bonsai benches with cone baffles; lethal trapping where legally permitted and populations are severe

Bark fraying from antler rubbing (stags); foliage browsed back; complete girdling of young trees in hard winters Plastic tree guards or wire mesh to 1.5 m height; deer-repellent sprays; fence young plantings; raise bonsai specimens on tall benches