Virginia creeper grows aggressively and looks beautiful in a garden. It has inconspicuous green, round flowers.
This plant doesn’t need any special care usually but in some cases, the creeper might die. Let’s look at the possible reasons.
Why is my Virginia creeper not growing?
Virginia creeper is an aggressive creeper and it should grow fine in normal/sub-normal conditions. It might not grow well due to various reasons.
Is your Virginia creeper Insect infested?
Insects are often the reason why your creeper is dying. Various types of insects can infect this aggressive creeper.
Insect infestation is quite easy to detect and treat, so do not stress yourself and just look for certain signs.
Aphid infection
Aphids are tiny, green to gray colored insects that feed on plant saps directly via leaves. They cause leaf curling and yellowing.
So if you see yellowish leaves, your Virginia creeper is probably aphid infested.
A heavy infection might lead to stunted growth of stems and leaves. One can use insecticidal soap to control aphids on Virginia creeper.
If the creeper is too close to your garden plants, you may want to use Neem oil to treat aphids.
Caterpillars
Caterpillars like to feast on Virginia creeper’s leaf edges. They hide in the dense foliage and curl leaves around them.
If the creeper is infested heavily, severe defoliation is seen.
Handpick the caterpillars and throw them into a bucket of soap water to get rid of them. You can also spray the creeper with Bacillus thuringiensis to kill young caterpillars.
Leafcutting Bees
Bees are known as the best friends of the flowering plants but a certain type of bees are not that helpful.
Leafcutting bees (Megachile spp.) carve out circles in leaves to make nests. This causes a lot of damage to the plants.
These are black bees and are quite similar to honeybees.
When you observe such circles in leaves, drape the affected leaves with cheesecloth to deter the bees.
Flea beetles
Grape flea beetles commonly infest Virginia creeper. These beetles may be green, blue, or purple metallic and are about 1/5th of an inch in size.
They have long, high legs and can jump. Adult beetles feed on buds.
Larvae of flea beetles carve out circular holes in leaves.
Make sure that the vine is pollinated by the bees before taking control measures. Carbaryl kills these beetles efficiently.
Leafhoppers
Leafhoppers affect many types of plants. They come in various colors. They are 1/4th of an inch in size.
Leafhoppers can be distinguished from other sap-feeding insects due to the fact that they are fast-moving.
They adapt to the color of the plant on which they are feeding. In severe cases, stippling and death of stems are seen.
The best way to get rid of leafhoppers is by spraying insecticidal soap when the insects are present.
Scale
Virginia creeper attracts a variety of Scale. They come in various forms. Some are covered in hard armor and look like barnacles.
Few others come in a waxy or cottony coating.
These insects are less than 1/4th of an inch and are often misidentified as unusual growths or fungal activity as the insects are mostly immobile.
You can use any type of horticulture oil to get rid of scale infestation.
Weevil infestation
Weevils are large beetles with elongated snouts. They are active at night. They are brown, black, or grey in color.
They chew on leaves and leave big notches in them. Adult weevils are harmless.
The larvae are dangerous! They chew on roots and destroy the root system if left untreated.
To treat: Handpick adult Weevils at night and treat the soil around the roots with commercially available parasitic nematodes.
Why is my Virginia creeper blotchy?
Do the leaves look like lace? Chances are it’s infested by the Japanese beetle, a purple/green insect.
You can spray some neem oil to get rid of the insects.
This condition may also happen due to heat, so identify the problem before treating the creeper accordingly.
Poor care
If you do not care well for the creeper it might have a hard time thriving.
Did you plant the creeper too close to the wall? Planting this creeper too close to the wall deters its growth.
Sunlight will not be sufficient and the root system gets limited.
How often are you watering the creeper? Overwatering and Underwatering are major issues that affect the growth of the Virginia creeper.
Make sure to water the creeper abundantly and only water when the soil is dry.
Is your Virginia creeper dying from the top?
Some people report their Virginia creeper dying from the top. This happens when whiteflies or fungus attacks the plant.
This creeper is usually disease-free. When there are extreme weather conditions like damp weather followed by dry weather, diseases are seen in this creeper.
You can spray neem oil on the foliage if you see some whiteflies. Remember to spray on the soil where the plant is rooted, as this is where whiteflies lay their eggs.
Will Virginia creeper grow in full sun?
It can grow in any weather condition. It can grow in full sun and shade.
This is probably not the reason why your creeper is dying. It is a beginner-friendly plant and even soil conditions don’t adversely affect the growth of the plant.
Does Virginia creeper need support?
Many creepers need physical support to grow and thrive. Does your Virginia creeper need a trellis?
A trellis might help in spreading faster but it’s not really needed for this creeper.
This creeper will grow on brick walls without effort but make sure your brick walls do not have any cracks in the wall as the creeper might damage the wall.
Does Virginia creeper lose its leaves in winter?
This creeper is deciduous, so it loses all its leaves every autumn. Fresh foliage is produced in the spring.
The creeper’s leaves become red before falling off. The creeper’s growth is minimal in the first year, it grows vigorously from the second year.
Do not worry if your creeper is losing leaves in autumn, this is natural.
Wrappin’ it up
Virginia creeper is a very beautiful plant that’s easy to care for. The creeper will get affected by diseases rarely.
Take good care of the plant and keep its growth in control, you don’t want the creeper to damage your shingles/bricks.
I hope this article helps :))