Rose Slug Control: How to Get Rid of Rose Slugs

This page is an expert guide on getting rid of rose slugs off your property using the products and methods suggested by our experienced pest control specialists. Follow this guide and use the recommended products, and you will eliminate rose slugs, which is guaranteed.

If you have a garden or flower bed and notice holes in your rose leaves, you likely have rose slugs. Despite their name, rose slugs aren't slugs and are more closely related to caterpillars. Rose slugs like to feed on the leaves of rose shrubs, so if you are growing roses, your flowers could be at risk.

Rose slugs are a prominent issue in mid to late summer. Often, the damage done to the rose leaves is mistaken for a disease or some other issue because the rose slug is not seen. This is usually due to the tiny and green rose slug, so it can blend into the leaf and go unnoticed. These bugs can kill your rose bush if you do not intervene.

If you are dealing with a rose slug infestation and damage to your roses, read on to find out what kills rose slugs and what you should do to get rid of the pest.

Identification

Before you can carry out a treatment plan, you must be sure you are dealing with rose slugs and not some other pest. Misidentification can lead to using the wrong treatment methods, which can cost you time and money. Here are some traits to look out for when recognizing rose slugs.

• There are three types of rose slug: one is a yellowish-green larva with a brown head, the other is a green-colored larva with bristles on its body, and the third is a curled-up slug that coils behind the leaves.
• They are very small, ranging from 1/2 to 3/4 inch in length max.
• These larvae are in the early lifecycle stage of plants-eating wasps called Sawflies.
• These slugs stay on the underside of the leaves.

Inspection

Once you have confirmed that you are dealing with rose slugs, you can proceed with the inspection. In this phase, you will need to observe the areas where you have noticed where rose slugs are active, as these areas are where you will focus your treatment applications.

Where To Look

Focus your search on areas where your garden plants, flowers, and vegetation are in your yard.

Rose slugs chew off the leaves of roses, defoliating the plants and causing decay in the foliage. The curled-up rose slugs curl up into a coil under the leaves and chew holes into them, removing the soft tissue, which results in the leaves looking scorched and brown. 

What To Look For

You'll be looking for plant damage and holes in your rose leaves. These will look like large holes that go through the leaf or little brown spots that look like a plant disease but are actually tiny; underdeveloped rose slugs that are too small to eat all the way through the leaf.

Treatment

The most effective method of dealing with damaging rose slugs and destroying your plants is insecticide. The trick is using products that effectively kill rose slugs but can also safely spray on plant life without harming the plants. This is why our experts recommend Dominion 2L.

Step 1: Apply Dominion 2L Insecticide

Dominion 2L Insecticide contains the active ingredient imidacloprid, which is known to be lethal to insects like rose slugs and is easy on plants. It also works systemically, meaning it can be applied to the soil and taken up into the plant's root system to protect the plant against rose slugs. You can safely spray around your garden, lawn, flowerbeds, and trees without an issue.

Mix 0.46 to 0.6 fl. oz. of Dominion 2L in a sprayer with 1 to 2 gallons of water for soil treatments. Apply as a broadcast treatment and mix into the soil.

As a foliar application, mix 1.5 oz. per 100 gals of water in a sprayer of your choice and then apply to your rose bushes, flower beds, and garden plants using a fan spray nozzle setting. Make sure to also get the underside of the leaves since that is where rose slugs like to hide. Spray Dominion 2L every 2 to 3 months for continued control.

Prevention

To keep rose slugs away from your flowers and garden, a quarterly preventative treatment of Dominion 2L will suffice. Aside from this, we also have a few additional tips.

• Picking the rose slugs. Use tweezers or some other device, and wear gloves while plucking or picking the larvae out of the rose leaves. Dispose of them in a solution of insecticidal soap. This will curb the infestation of rose slugs and limit the damage that will be caused to your rose plants.
• Water hosing the rose slugs. Use a water hose over the rose plants. Use the valve with pressure, open the water hose, and wash away the rose slugs. The pressure of the water will let the slugs fall off the leaves. You can pick them up and spray insecticidal soap over the slug to dehydrate and kill them. The pressure of the water will also kill a few of the slugs. Use 3 tablespoons of insecticidal soap with 1 quart of water and spray it directly on the fallen rose slugs. It will kill the larva immediately and control the infestation of the rose plants. A bug blaster can be used; it is a special device that creates a wall of water, and the jet of water comes with pressure, eradicating the rose slugs from the leaves.
• Tending to the roses. Keep the roses fresh and clean. Make sure to prune and remove all decayed leaves surrounding the rose plants. The removal of decayed leaves will ward away the rose slugs. Protecting the soil, applying fertilizer, and other treatments that roses need will keep the sawflies away.

Key Takeaways

What are Rose Slugs?

• Rose slugs are the larvae of sawflies. They are known to have a big appetite for rose leaves in gardens and flowerbeds and can do a lot of damage if no intervention is made.

How to Get Rid of Rose Slugs

• We recommend spraying Dominion 2L on plants and garden soil to kill rose slugs and end the infestation. Apply as needed until you no longer notice Rose slug activity.

Preventing Rose Slug Reinfestation

• To prevent rose slug re-infestation, spray Dominion 2L every 2 or 3 months for continued protection and control, and tend to your rose garden regularly.