root borer

noun

: an insect or insect larva that bores into the roots of plants: such as

a

: the large larva of a beetle (Prionus laticollis) of the family Cerambycidae that infests the roots of the grapevine and of various trees

b

: the larva of any of various moths (as Paranthrene polistiformis) that bores in grapevine roots

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