If you discover holes in the leaves of the cherry laurel, it is rarely a pest, as many garden owners suspect. Rather, the circular holes are a result of shotgun disease, a widespread fungal disease. In addition to cherry laurel, it also affects types of stone fruit such as plum, cherry, peach or almond.
recognize shotgun
You can tell that no pest is responsible for the pitting by the fact that the leaves show different stages of disease:
- Brighter spots can be found on the young leaves.
- These turn reddish brown after a few days.
- The leaf surface thins visibly.
- The plant rejects the diseased tissue, leaving the typical holes.
The nectar glands of the cherry laurel look deceptively similar to buckshot
If you discover a few dark spots along the leaf blade on the underside of the leaves, it is usually not shot. From these extrafloral nectaries, the laurel cherry secretes sweet plant juices. The glands are initially recognizable as dark green dots, which over time turn brownish due to harmless sooty mold fungi. Depending on the cherry laurel species, there are between four and ten of these nectar glands per leaf.
Contain the fungal disease in the early stages
Before you reach for the chemical club to curb the shot, it is worth fighting the fungus with biological means first.
Thoroughly cut out all affected parts of the plant. You should make sure that the shrubs are loosely structured so that the leaves can dry off quickly. The leaves of the cherry laurel that have fallen to the ground must also be removed consistently. Dispose of both clippings and leaves in the trash, as the fungal spores will survive in the compost.
In order to strengthen the shrubs, it is advisable to fertilize them with long-term fertilizers such as horn shavings, mature manure or compost. Spraying with horsetail is also showing good results.
If the disease cannot be contained, fungicides can help
If, despite these measures, the fungus infests the cherry laurel again, you can obtain highly effective sprays against shotgun disease (Stigmina carpophalia) on the market.
tips and tricks
Eaten leaves on the laurel cherry could also come from the vine weevil. However, the nocturnal beetle nibbles almost exclusively on the leaf edges and causes bay feeding. As a result, the damage caused by the vine weevil can be easily distinguished from that of shotgun disease.