Opogona sacchari is a (sub)tropical moth that enters into countries with imported plant material and that causes damage in the covered culture of a large number of ornamental crops. Host plants of the banana borer are: Aechmea, Alpinia, Araucaria, bamboo, banana, Beaucarnea, Begonia, Bougainvillea, Bromeliaceae, Cactaceae, Capsicum, Chamaedorea, Cordyline, Dieffenbachia, Dracaena, Euphorbia pulcherrima, Ficus, Gloxinia, Heliconia, Hippeastrum, maize, Maranta, Pachira, Philodendron, pineapple, Saintpaulia, Sanseveria, Strelitzia, sugar cane and Yucca.
Spray pruned plants with Bt or pyrethrin Drench the bark and the newly emerging verticals with applications of Bacillus thuringiensis (Bt) shortly after pruning and periodically thereafter as needed to achieve economic control. Proper spray timing is important to achieve best results. It probably is not necessary to spray Bt on plants which have not been pruned recently. For established infestations of the banana moth, supplement the use of Bt with pyrethrin sprays, which are useful as
contact insecticides.
russ had a similar problem with my AE AE: the worm or worms were down inside. I poured diluted then straight ORGANICIDE down inside the stalks of the leaves. The next leaf that grew was PERFECT, not one worm mark.
