2 March 2026

What’s eating my Red Robin bush? Is it vine weevil or viburnham beetle?

Q. “Hi there, I have something eating my red robin bush as well as other shrubs including my viburnum – see attached photos. I have used nematodes on the lawn & have had some success. Are you able to advise what treatment to use on the bushes? I found a white grub in the border, buried deep, rolled into a ball & wondered if that might be the culprit? Many thanks.” Julie Tidy

A. Thanks for the message and this is typical adult vine weevil damage i.e. the adult beetles take “U” shaped notches out of the side of the leaves. The adults then lay eggs under the bushes and the grubs then attack the roots, which sounds like the white grub you found. These grubs will then pupate and turn into the next generation of vine weevils that will attack the foliage in the summer. Treat the soil under any affected plants with Nemasys Vine Weevil Killer TWICE a year i.e. spring (April) and Autumn (early Sept) to kill the grubs and this should stop a lot of this damage. You might still get a little from adult beetles migrating into your garden from the neighbours but you can target these if needed with the Adult Vine Weevil Traps.

The Viburnham could be being attacked by viburnham beetles, but this results in reducing the leaves to “lace” before defoliating the plants. A common symptom is Viburnum bushes produce an unpleasant odour when attacked particularly when the foliage is wet. Viburnum beetle overwinters as eggs that are deposited in the bark of stems in late summer by the beetles. The larvae then emerge in April / May to feed on the leaves, before dropping to the floor and pupating in the soil emerge as adults in late summer. Treat the larvae with NemaMix Nematodes – EITHER treat the larvae on the bushes in April / May by sprayed 3 times at 7 day intervals AND / OR drench the soil UNDER and around the bushes with F&V (3 times at 7 day intervals) to target the larvae before they pupate (May – July). 

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