By Onegrower
Renfrewshire,
United Kingdom 
Whats eating my magnolia? Newly planted in May chatles henry kern magnolia.
Due to the weather the leaves went spotty brown and dropped off. Some lovely new leaves grew and were then decimated by something unknown. Iv dug it up to try to recover it. Any ideas what the culprit is? The tree is more or less bare. The pics below show the last ‘full’ remaining leaves. The rest have been devoured. Planted in a sheltered sunny spot in s new bed. Ericaceous soil
1 Sep, 2022
Answers
I think you have at least 2 'pests' at work. The eaten edges are typical of Vine weevil, whilst the holes in the middle of the leaf is typical of flea beetle damage.
2 Sep, 2022
Thanks both, that gives me a good starting point. Hopefully removing it from the ground will help it recover. It was fine until it was planted
3 Sep, 2022
Previous question
« Plant ID please Can anyone identify this for me? It's in my dad's garden,...
If you are inspecting your Magnolia regularly in the daytime when perhaps try viewing it when it gets dark with a torch. I inspect my Cornus for Vine weevil in the evenings and collect any I find in a jam jar.
2 Sep, 2022