In recent years, there has been a rise in cases of chestnut trees in Odessa being affected by leaf miners. This issue is not unique to our city but is prevalent in many European cities.

Since 2017, specialists from the Municipal Enterprise «City Green Trust» have been annually vaccinating chestnuts to prevent the adverse effects of infestation by these pests.

The injection is administered into the tree's vascular tissue through a small hole, allowing the medication to spread into the leaves, making them inedible for the leaf miners. As a result, the larvae die. This method of pest control is permissible in urban areas, as it is completely safe for both the environment and the trees themselves.

In 2025, 1000 trees were vaccinated.

Note
The leaf miner is a dangerous pest of chestnuts. The caterpillars live and feed inside the leaves, leading to the degradation of the tree's foliage and causing significant harm to urban chestnut plantations. The damage caused by this type of pest in Europe amounts to hundreds of millions of euros annually, raising questions about the viability of cultivating horse chestnuts in cities. The harm inflicted by the caterpillars prevents the chestnut canopies from adequately accumulating nutrients, which increases the risk of winter die-off.