Q: My gardener friends in Florida are all excited about a new pest of roses: chili thrips.

Do we have them here?

A: We don’t yet have them here, and thank goodness for that!

Chili thrips chew on plant leaves and severely disfigure them. It almost looks like herbicide damage on some plants.

Thrips attack dozens of plants: roses, strawberry, cucumber, viburnum, blueberry and many more.

They can be controlled by certain insecticides and possibly by predatory mites.

Entomologists in Florida have set up an excellent website detailing damage and control.

Chili Thrips