The Attack of the Red Palm Weevil

The Attack of the Red Palm Weevil


Today I drove from Alora to Casarabonela and I was struck by the increase in sickly or dead palm trees. The only one on Calle Ancha here has recently been affected and just a stump remains. It is depressing to see an affected tree. The branches start to droop until every one flops down and falls off. All that can be done is to chop down the tree and burn it. This will not save the tree.
The Red Palm Weevil has come to Spain by importation of palms from Egypt. The spread  of the weevil has been traced back to Saudi Arabia. Now it is spreading through Spain and southern Europe.
Insecticides have been ineffective; only slowing down the life cycle of the weevil. Even burning is not the answer as the weevils escape the fire and attack other trees.
The importation and exportation of palm trees is multi million pound business.
An infected palm tree may show no signs until a few leaves turn yellow and droop. By this time the weevils have eaten into the heart of the tree which has effectively been eaten from the inside.

My visit to Casarabonela was to meet an estate agent who had recently sold the property adjoining our olive grove to a Spanish lawyer as a second home. The new owner wanted to buy our land but we turned him down. Now he is trying to redraw the boundaries to gain land from us. Land boundaries here are very often vague and agreed by the respective owners but when land is bought or sold the fun starts. Apparently this chap is a big shot lawyer and so I expect he will get anything he wants. We'll see.

Not a good week so far. I tried to return two low energy long life light bulbs yesterday which had lasted 3 weeks. No joy. ´no guarantee on light bulbs' even though it says on the packet they will last 10,000 hours. I ended up arguing with the salesman and his boss whom I referred to as a 'sin verguenza' which it appears is a grave insult. The police were threatened and we left the shop.

17/14/2012