Pests & diseases › Leaf Miner
Leaf Miner
Tiny fly larvae tunnel between leaf surfaces leaving winding pale trails. Affects beetroot, chard, spinach and celery.
Symptoms
- Pale winding tunnels visible through translucent leaves
- Brown blistered patches where tunnels join
- Reduced vigour but rarely fatal
Lifecycle
Two or three generations: April–May, June–July, August.
What to do
- Pick off and bin affected leaves before larvae mature
- Squash larvae visible inside the mine
If it's bad
- No effective home-garden insecticide (larvae are protected inside the leaf)
Stop it coming back
- Insect-proof mesh from sowing
- Rotate beetroot/chard family on a three-year cycle
- Clear up infected leaves at end of season — don't compost
Crops it goes for
Plan the plot, track every sowing, cook the harvest
Sowing reminders and harvest forecasts for your own frost dates, the Seed Tin, Scan Centre for any label or packet, and the Potty Mouth Garden Club. Free to start.