Leaf Miner
Pale winding trails or blotches inside the leaf itself — the larva feeds between the leaf's upper and lower skins, so the damage is sealed under the surface. Spinach, chard, beets, and citrus show it most; the trails widen as the larva grows.
Pest checklist
Four things to look for. If most of them match what you are holding, you are in the right place.
What gets rid of them
Gentlest option first. For most backyard cases the first one is enough, so try these in order and stop as soon as it works. If you do spray something, the product label tells you how — please read the notice further down.
1Pick and destroy mined leaves
The larva is still inside the trail; removing the leaf removes the next generation. Do not compost them.
Try this first2Row cover on spinach and chard
Excludes the egg-laying fly from crops that need no pollination.
floating row cover garden3Ignore light damage on ornamentals
Mines are cosmetic on established trees and shrubs; sprays rarely reach the larva anyway.
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Which plants get leaf miner
Every plant we cover that gets leaf miner, grouped by type — tap any one to open its page. A note beside a plant came from that plant’s own entry, because the same pest can be a minor nuisance on one plant and a serious problem on another. Plenty of plants we do not cover get it too.
trees7
perennials4
biennial1
Plant families hit hardest
Related plants often share the same problems, so if one plant in a family has it, check the others. The largest group here is Amaranthaceae, with 4 of the 18 affected plants.
- Amaranthaceae4 plants
- Rutaceae4 plants
- Apiaceae2 plants
- Aquifoliaceae2 plants
When to treat
Pick off mined leaves as soon as the trails appear. Sprays cannot reach the larva inside the leaf.
On specific plants
- Growing
- Row cover blocks leaf miner completely.
- Growing
- Row cover for leaf miner; resistant varieties for mildew.
- Growing
- Row cover early for leaf miner.
Timing only — the label is the law
This page tells you when to watch for leaf miner and when treating is worth considering. It is not a recommendation to apply any particular product. Read and follow the product label before you spray — under federal law the label is the legal instruction, and using a pesticide against it is illegal.
- Check the pre-harvest interval. Every product that’s cleared for an edible crop sets a minimum number of days between spraying and picking. Find it on the label before you spray anything you intend to eat.
- Check the re-entry interval before you or anyone else works in the treated area again, and use the protective equipment the label names.
- Confirm the product is registered for your crop in your state. This page groups many different crops together, and a product legal on one of them is not legal on all of them — state registrations differ too. Your state pesticide agency or local extension office can confirm both.
- Rates and mixing instructions come from the label, never from us. We don’t publish them because they differ by product and formulation.
Other problems on the same plants
If a plant gets leaf miner, these are the problems it most often gets as well, so they are worth checking for while you are out there. They tend to appear together; one does not cause another.