Leaf miners

Editorial diagnosis

Diagnosis overview

Leaf miner larvae feed inside leaves and create pale winding tunnels.

In gardens, Leaf miners can occur on plants including Tree spinach, tarragon, Ground Ivy, cutting lettuce. In the available profiles, it is linked mainly with Fruit vegetables, Herbs, Leafy vegetables. Recorded timing or triggers include peak infestation June–August, Summer.

The recorded risk level is low. Remove affected leaves on seedlings or when damage is heavy.

Inspect leaf undersides, shoot tips, and the soil around the plant at different times of day. Eggs, larvae, droppings, webbing, or slime trails are often more diagnostic than one damaged leaf.

A common mistake is to treat feeding damage without checking the animal, eggs, larvae, time of activity, and affected plant parts.