Alternative pesticide company Agralan has warned that from now on and through the winter is vine weevil season.

The pest feeds on roots and stem-bases, killing or weakening plants. Although it is mainly a problem in container-grown plants, they can also cause damage to some border plants and strawberries.

The company says that the most eco-friendly solution is a parasitic nematode called Heterorhabditis megidis, which seeks out and destroys vine weevil larvae in compost and soil, releasing symbiotic bacterium once inside the root zone.

The parasite works by killing off the attacked larvae, which go yellow or reddish brown in colour and die about two days later. The nematodes reproduce inside the larva as it decomposes.