Click below to listen to my 2 min. Garden Bite radio show: Japanese beetles – the struggle is real
I’m already getting questions about Japanese beetles. The adults show up starting in late spring and continue munching their way through many of our plants through mid summer. UGH.
It’s sad when a great joy in the garden is grabbing your container of soapy water and drowning this little buggers, but there it is!
Is there something we can do NOW? Yes. It does involve pyrethrin. Bonide sells Japanese Beetle Killer (this link has more options) It is a safe and effective way to control these beasts on vegetables, grapes, raspberries, flowers, roses, trees and shrubs.
It will also control cucumber beetles, flea beetles, cabbageworms, Colorado potato beetles, and more. The key is to get at your plants at the first sign and FOLLOW the directions on the label.
One thing I do NOT recommend is a Japanese beetle trap. If you live in a neighborhood, that trap tells them “hey, the party’s over here, stop on by”.
But what about next year? Neem oil comes from the neem tree, completely organic and icky tasting and smelling. It is yellow to brown, has a bitter taste, has a garlic/sulfur smell and has been used for hundreds of years to control pests and diseases. Albeit slower than the other stuff. Neem oil is useful in a number of ways.
Now, the big thing is grub control. Green Thumb’s Season Long Grub Control kills grubs all season long. Apply late May through mid August for best results. It’s purported to stop the feeding activity immediately and kill quickly.
