curculio

American  

[kur-kyoo-lee-oh] / kɜrˈkju liˌoʊ /

noun

curculios plural

1. any of several weevils, especially one of the genus Conotrachelus, as C. nenuphar plum curculio, which feeds on plums, cherries, and other fruits.

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curculio British  

/ kɜːˈkjuːlɪˌəʊ /

noun

1. any of various American weevils, esp Conotrachelus nenuphar ( plum curculio ), a pest of fruit trees

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Other Word Forms

Noun Inflected Forms

• curculios
  plural

Etymology

Origin of curculio

1750–60; < Latin: weevil, corn worm

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

curculio curculios

In the 1890s many smaller growers struggled to afford expensive and elaborate controls to combat pests such as San Jose scale and plum curculio.

From Salon ● Jun. 8, 2023

Plum curculio worms may show up in fruits if the trees are too deep in the ground — so get all the root flares dramatically exposed by removing mulch and soil.

From Seattle Times ● May 27, 2020

David Riley, a professor of entomology at the University of Georgia, works with vegetable pests like cowpea curculio, which has decimated the state’s black-eye pea fields.

From Washington Post ● Apr. 20, 2019

Mark has had good results against plum curculio by spraying his tree with Surround, a nontoxic product approved for organic growers.

From Washington Post ● Apr. 25, 2017

The disease still prevails among us, and it is sure to destroy all the plums which escape puncture by the curculio.

From American Pomology Apples by Warder, J. A.

Lead arsenate, 4 pounds per 100 gallons of water, has been relied upon in the past for control of various nut curculios.

From Northern Nut Growers Association Report of the Proceedings at the 41st Annual Meeting Pleasant Valley, New York, August 28, 29 and 30, 1950 by Northern Nut Growers Association

We are getting the upper hand of the curculios by the use of cryolite spray but the root-worm beetle problem is still unsolved.

From Northern Nut Growers Association Report of the Proceedings at the Thirty-Eighth Annual Meeting Guelph, Ontario, September 3, 4, 5, 1947 by Northern Nut Growers Association

Clean cultivation will also do away with many of the curculios, since they depend on unbroken soil in the fall for their metamorphosis.

From Northern Nut Growers Association Report of the Proceedings at the Thirty-Seventh Annual Report Wooster, Ohio, September 3, 4, 5, 1946 by Northern Nut Growers Association

For many years these curculios have been controlled by spraying the trees soon after growth starts with lead arsenate, 2 pounds per 100 gallons, plus an equal amount of hydrated lime.

From Northern Nut Growers Association Report of the Proceedings at the 43rd Annual Meeting Rockport, Indiana, August 25, 26 and 27, 1952 by Northern Nut Growers Association

Scrobe, skrōb, n. a groove in the rostrum of weevils or curculios, or on the outer side of the mandible.—adjs.

From Chambers's Twentieth Century Dictionary (part 4 of 4: S-Z and supplements) by Various