Hello! This is one of my first times doing something gardening-related. I've been growing a pot of sweet basil purchased from a grocery store and noticed lately that chew-marks and tiny, black, dropping-like particles are beginning to appear on leaves. I'd like help identifying the pests. Most of the chew-marks are on the outer edges, but there are a few holes on the inside; from what I've researched on the web, slugs usually eat from the outside, and caterpillars from the inside. I've been searching for slime-trails under a morning sun but haven't found any so far, and when I checked last night for diners, there were one or two winged insects and a white, almost translucent spider perched on leaves—they don't seem to be culprits. The basil grows outdoors and receives more afternoon than morning sunlight and has begun to flower, its stems have begun to turn woody, and I added mulch from the backyard two months ago. Below are a few pictures. Full basil plant. Full basil base. Healthy leaves of the basil in the foreground, weird stem, strangely coloured leaf in the centre of the background. The soil. Outer-edge chew marks in the foreground, hole in the leaf in the centre of the background. Outer-edge chew marks. Outer-edge chew marks. Dropping (black particle in the center). Another angle of basil_chew_1.jpg that shows white droppings on the bottom of the centre leaf. Many thanks for your thoughts! If more information is necessary, simply ask, and I will provide.
Picture links dont work for me. Is it cool at night for you? I know my basil plants have taken a downturn with the cool nights the last couple weeks.
Thanks for the reply, jimmyq! I was fixing the image links just now, and they should be fine now. It is quite cool at night, around 10°C
Basil has the equivalent of house plant temperature requirements. Here we had store-bought basil sitting on the kitchen counter get stripped by a caterpillar. Dark speckles and coarse chewing are signs of caterpillars being present. Spiders suck the juices of other animals and never those of plants, nor do they ever chew plants.
