The mint leaf beetle, Chrysolina herbacea is a native, iridescent green beetle that feeds on the leaves of the mint family in the south of the UK. Both the adults and their fat, black larvae feast on the foliage.

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Find out how to identify and deal with mint beetle in this clip from Gardeners' World:

Symptoms

Holes in leaves, made by iridescent green beetles and their and fat, black grubs.

Find it on

mint, pennyroyal

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Organic

Mint is a prolific plant, so there's no need to control the beetles. If you're worried, you could try growing pennyroyal, Mentha pulegium as a sacrificial crop, or simply remove beetles and larvae by hand and squish them.

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