root borer
nounDefinition of root borer
: 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