What's eating my pansy?

Aphids are the most frequent pansy pest, colonising stems, buds, and leaf undersides and spreading cucumber mosaic virus. Slugs and snails shred petals and young leaves overnight. Violet sawfly larvae skeletonise leaves in late spring. Deer and rabbits will browse pansies readily if not protected. Consistent scouting and early intervention keep infestations manageable.

Dense soft colonies on growing tips, under leaves, and inside flower buds; sticky honeydew, distorted growth, and virus transmission. Spray with insecticidal soap or neem oil; use yellow sticky traps to monitor populations. Remove badly infested stems promptly.

Large irregular holes in petals and leaves, plus characteristic slime trails; most active at night and after rain. Apply iron phosphate pellets; hand-pick at night. Avoid thick mulch directly around plants. Beer traps work well in borders.

Larvae skeletonise or eat entire leaf tissue from the leaf underside in May–June, leaving only major veins. Hand-pick larvae; squash egg masses on leaf undersides. A contact insecticide such as pyrethrin controls outbreaks if populations are high.

Entire plants browsed to ground level overnight, particularly along garden edges and where pansies are planted en masse. Use wire cloches or low fencing around beds. Repellent sprays (garlic- or predator-urine-based) provide some deterrence if reapplied after rain.