Insects That Attack Buckeye Trees

Buckeye Lace Bug

• More than 100 species of lace bug exist and each species tends to focus its attention on one particular host. The buckeye lace bug inhabits the various types of buckeye trees, sucking fluid away from leaf tissue and causing discoloration in the foliage, reduced vigor and premature dropping of leaves. The tiny lace bug bears a sort of flattened, rectangular appearance and causes primarily aesthetic damage to the tree that rarely warrants control measures.

Walnut Scale

• The walnut scale (Quadraspidiotus juglansregiae) feasts on a variety of trees, including the buckeye. This scale insect measures approximately one-eighth of an inch in length and is most active in the summer months. These circular, flat insects have a gray body with a reddish-brown spot and attach themselves to the branches of a buckeye tree, sucking away fluid from the inner bark. This causes water stress to the tree and possible cracking of the bark.

Walnut Scale Management

• Walnut scales usually cluster in daisy-shaped groups with the males emerging as tiny, winged insects after mating with the females. Aside from aesthetic damage, the walnut scale causes little damage of importance to the buckeye tree. When the insect infests a tree, it is typically well-managed by its natural predators. Insecticides are effective against walnut scale but they also kill the natural predators of the insect. The best time to apply the insecticide is in late spring just after the hatching of eggs.

Other Problems

• Other, minor pests of the buckeye include the sapwood timberworm (Hylecoetus lugubris) and the chrysomelid (Derocrepis aesculi). The tree also suffers very little from any disease problems although it occasionally experiences leaf blotch (Guignardia aesculi), a condition that causes the foliage to take on a scorched appearance. A powdery mildew fungi (Uncincula flexuosa) also attacks buckeye leaves and a leaf rust (Puccinia andropogonis) occurs in the western sections of the tree's native range. The tree also tends to produce foliage early and the leaves may therefore be damaged by spring frosts.