Cutworm

Cutworms are in the family Noctuidae along with the larvae of many moths.

Cutworms feed on fruit trees and many other plants including garden vegetables, corn, cotton, tobacco and sunflowers.

Cutworm moths may lay as many as several hundred eggs on their host plants. The larvae cut off young, low-growing plants at, or below the surface of the soil. Cutworms can be found about 5 cm beneath the surface of the soil. Adult moths feed at dusk by sucking nectar from flowers and are often attracted to lights at night. Cutworms overwinter underground in the pupal stage and emerge in the spring.

Photo courtesy of Clemson University Department of Entomology, Soils & Plant Sciences, Cooperative Extension Service.

For control products and more information please see our Caterpillars and Moths Control page.