bud I noticed this lil maggot type thing come out of the stem almost like a small wax worm
I'm thinking it's the larvae of a stem boring beetle.
They LOVE autoflowers.
Dope plants are perfect for them.
It's also the time of year for them to be going out and doing their thing. June/July are when they come out in search of nesting grounds.
Beetles climb up plant to figure out if their offspring can survive in there. They need vertical room.
Bore a hole in the plant.
Lay eggs inside.
Eggs hatch and larvae tend to kill each other off.
If it's a big plant and good food source not so much.
Regardless though they'll tunnel up and down your plant eating the inside.
Effectively hollowing out the main stalk.
Check your plants for a single tiny hole in the stem.
You may find what looks to be like sand or sawdust around it.
Your stems will also be fatter and look "supercropped".
That's from the little guy having a feast on the inside of your stem.
And yes you'll have buds wither up and die. I've had the exact same thing happen.
Effected plants can and do survive.
Yields will suffer cause your plants focusing a lot of energy on healing itself.
If you find any that are hosting them then stake them up.
They'll be more susceptible to high wind.hair rain snapping them in half.
I haven't found a pesticide that you could feasibly pour into the hole and kill the larvae without jacking the plant all to hell.
You would have to actually have it contact the larvae to work. Which is inside of your stem. I'm note sure if neem oil will do the trick but I also haven't tried it. If you do try then please let us know the outcome. Especially if it's effective.You can be a RIU hero.
If not then do the following.
Go to a guitar shop.
Get some small gauge string. The smallest you can find but still sturdy.
Run the string down the hole and stab the little bugger to death with it.
If you're in a legal state just explain the situation to whoever is working. They can help you figure out a good gauge to use.
On a side note they won't lay eggs in anything that won't have enough room for it's offspring.
I've never had one touch plants I've had topped low to the ground. But they got into ones right in the same patch that weren't topped.
Also had them in a veggie garden. They demolished my monster zucchini and tomato plants. Even going down into the rootmass. But they ignored the smaller plants that were planted after those.
Hope u can see it bout as good as I can get ...
