Decoy pesticide treated plant for vine weevil

KatG

I’m Failing in my battle against vine weevil and wonder about a technique I saw where you treat a decoy plant with a pesticide. I think the idea is to put out at dusk only and make sure no flowers, so should be no risk to bees etc . I have been using nematodes - bought multiple lots last autumn and this spring and clearly still have a huge vine weevil problem!!
Has anyone has any experience with decoy plants? 

mikeymustard

So it's not just a placebo then?
I think nematodes need a warm spell to work. We used 'todes this spring just before an extended cold patch so not sure if we had much success

punkdoc

How is that method supposed to work.
It does not appear to have any logic to me.

madpenguin

punkdoc said:

How is that method supposed to work.
It does not appear to have any logic to me.

I think the Vine Weevil beetles eat the plant (at night when they are active) so hopefully killing them but no risk to bees as they are not active and no flowers for them.
I presume the decoy plant would be in a pot,with a systemic insecticide,and put somewhere safe during the day?

BobTheGardener

pdoc, I think you treat a potted plant (one which is known to be very atractive to adult vine weevils) with a systemic insecticide and place it in the problem area at night.  Any adults which feed from it should die.  However, it clearly won't have any effect at all on the existing grubs in the soil and there is still a risk to anything which eats the dead poisoned adults (eg hedgehogs), which will now have those nasty neo-nicotinoids in their bodies.

punkdoc

OK. Think I understand now.