BS: Cuckoo spit and Xylella disease

Subject: BS: Cuckoo spit and Xylella disease
From: Steve Shaw
Date: 27 May 19 - 07:10 AM

We're being urged to seek out and report sightings of froghopper/spittle bug/cuckoo spit in our gardens as it's strongly suspected as being responsible for the spread of a deadly plant disease in Europe. Well it's everywhere in my garden in abundance, on mint, parsley, goosegrass, nettles, docks, sow thistle and more. It's there every year at this time but it seems to be having a particularly good time this year. As far as I know we haven't got the disease yet in the UK but I can't for the life of me see how we'd ever be able to control froghoppers...

Subject: RE: BS: Cuckoo spit and Xylella disease
From: Steve Shaw
Date: 27 May 19 - 09:12 AM

I hopped out for another look, and I added rocket, Jacob's Ladder, parsnips and bolted broccoli to that list. Maybe I shouldn't let it bolt.

Subject: RE: BS: Cuckoo spit and Xylella disease
From: Joe Offer
Date: 28 May 19 - 12:17 AM

Birds spit?

Subject: RE: BS: Cuckoo spit and Xylella disease
From: Steve Shaw
Date: 28 May 19 - 08:12 AM

Cuckoo spit because it appears at the same time of the year that we hear cuckoos. It's little blobs of froth seen on plants, each blob containing an immature froghopper bug. Add roses and American willowherb to my list.

Subject: RE: BS: Cuckoo spit and Xylella disease
From: Jack Campin
Date: 28 May 19 - 09:57 AM

I was in southern Italy earlier in the year - it's the major local issue there, causing catastrophic damage to the olive trees. Nobody has much idea how to control it.

Subject: RE: BS: Cuckoo spit and Xylella disease
From: Joe Offer
Date: 28 May 19 - 12:17 PM

My wife the Nature Child says the foam is from what we call spittle bugs.

Subject: RE: BS: Cuckoo spit and Xylella disease
From: Steve Shaw
Date: 28 May 19 - 04:04 PM

That's another name for it. I was in the Salento in Puglia in June 2016, Jack, and the disease had already started to take hold on the olives (which are so abundant there that the disease must be especially devastating for the local economy). I understand that there are outbreaks in Spain too. Damn.

Subject: RE: BS: Cuckoo spit and Xylella disease
From: keberoxu
Date: 30 May 19 - 01:33 PM

Just when you think you've heard everything ...

Subject: RE: BS: Cuckoo spit and Xylella disease
From: Mr Red
Date: 30 May 19 - 05:04 PM

The thing about global warming is we don't know what else it brings.

The reason Monarch Butterflies fly 5000 miles is because the when ice receded, little plants followed but the trees couldn't follow so fast. Butterflies need the trees, the caterpillars need the plant.

That phenomenon has been seen in British butterflies to some degree.

Birds overwintering in the UK.

Strange things happen in a closely coupled ecology that is the Earth.

I notice less house sparrows and more jackdaws. Sort of observation that begs the question: which bird controls the spittle bug population?

Subject: RE: BS: Cuckoo spit and Xylella disease
From: Steve Shaw
Date: 30 May 19 - 11:39 PM

I like to blame either Trump, Brexit or global warming for everything that goes wrong, but I haven't yet read that the spread of Xylella is linked to the latter. Have you?

Subject: RE: BS: Cuckoo spit and Xylella disease
From: Iains
Date: 31 May 19 - 03:36 AM

An expensive business. The European Commission considers Xylella to be among the most dangerous plant bacteria in the world. Different strains of it have wreaked havoc on vineyards in California and citrus trees in Brazil, killing acres of valuable plants and causing billions in lost revenue.

Subject: RE: BS: Cuckoo spit and Xylella disease
From: Mr Red
Date: 31 May 19 - 03:54 AM

haven't yet read that the spread of Xylella is linked to the latter. Have you?

No, correlation isn't necessarily cause. What I eluded to was that it might, (and almost certainly is) due to predation or lack of it on a convenient host. And that may be due to food abundance or lack of it for the main predators. Which in turn depend on predators thereof, which ............................

It could have been brought to Ireland by some other normally more southerly carrier that is not yet abundant and the disease found a far more ubiquitous, resilient host. All made possible by global warming, and the mobility of people. The latter being the principle vector of global warming.

And little fleas have lesser fleas, and so on infinitum. The ecology is closely coupled.

Subject: RE: BS: Cuckoo spit and Xylella disease
From: Mr Red
Date: 02 Jun 19 - 06:05 AM

I noticed cuckoo spit on the GF's lavender. She is a gardener, but has no cabbage, collie, or broccoli/calabrese. She has seen it everywhere too.

Subject: RE: BS: Cuckoo spit and Xylella disease
From: JHW
Date: 02 Jun 19 - 06:33 AM

This Year I haven't seen any, usually on Helenium and much else in front garden, only ever the front. Several cuckoos so right time.