noun
- A caterpillar that feeds on plant stems and roots, often cutting down seedlings and young plants at ground level.
Usage: Common agricultural pest; Larval stage of certain moths
Examples
- The farmer discovered cutworms had destroyed half of the newly planted corn seedlings.
- Cutworms are most active at night and hide in the soil during the day.
- Gardeners use collars around young plants to protect them from cutworms.
- The cutworm larva can sever a plant stem with a single bite.
- Crop rotation and proper soil management help reduce cutworm populations.