Japanese Beetle Battle Plan for 2018

Adult Japanese Beetles on Siberian Elm Weed Trees

Welcome to the first 2018 blog about Japanese beetles. If only the topic could be something more fun and more important like peace on earth.

Maybe next time.

Sigh. There's no better way to prepare for the imminent arrival of adult Japanese beetles then to face the reality together. They will be showing up soon to begin their plant eating carnage. What's your management plan? I'm calling my plan - "battle readiness in four steps." 

First, as difficult as it may seem - wrap your head around the fact that JB management is ongoing from first sighting on your favorite plant (s) to sometime in September when their numbers wane. There is no one fix all/kill all application for adult beetles and their egg-larvae offspring (both stages can be treated). Well there is one fix all but that would require moving to Alaska or the Caribbean. 

Second, determine if and how you'll remove or manage the adult beetles all summer as they keep coming and coming and coming - just like the mail.

Third, determine if and how you'll treat your turf where they lay their eggs - you know, the next generation - 2019 beetles. 

Four, act on your plan.

The good news for determining two through four is that Dr. Whitney Cranshaw, Colorado State University entomologist extraordinaire has revised his very informative and helpful fact sheet on the Japanese beetle. Find it HERE.

I suggest printing the fact sheet and reading it carefully. Pay attention to their life cycle (one year) and realize that effective management involves dealing with both adult beetles and their offspring. Dr. Cranshaw includes excellent management recommendations for both life stages. Circle the ones that make the most sense to you based on your time and pocketbook. Some products are pricey if you choose to use them regularly. Other controls sell out very quickly from mail order companies. 

Dr. Cranshaw has helped us tremendously with control details on the fact sheet by listing common names for the products, trade names, persistence tips, whether it's okay for food crops and the ever important pollinator hazard information.

Action - You may opt to do nothing - no management. You'll just complain to anyone around you who will listen, trust me from experience, eventually they will ask you to please stop complaining. Maybe they will pack your bags.

The most rewarding and immediate control method is to flick adults into soapy water in the morning or evening when they are sluggish and easy to flick. Keeping the numbers down actually reduces more beetles from joining the eating party on your plants. What attracts them to the plants is the plant oils released by beetle chewing (called congregation feeding), so less beetle chewing means less beetle visits. The research on Japanese beetles says that it is fine to squish or pinch adults on the spot. Their smushed parts do not attract more beetles to the area - it's the chewed plant oils that put out the welcome sign.

I know retired people who flick beetles on their infested plants twice a day. I don't think they are available for hire. If they did, their business card might read - 
 

Japanese Beetle Removal - The Number One Firm in Flicking

"We flick so you don't have to"

 
Personally, it's not easy for me to flick since Japanese beetles mainly dine on the tall silver lace vines that border our property. The beetle numbers are overwhelming, so I will use two, possibly three organic products this summer to kill adults. Remember - there are several management choices.

Silverlace Vine

My plan includes using a neem product containing azadiractin and Btg, also known as beetleJUS!™ which is one of the mail order products that sells out quickly. I'll also hand pick reachable beetles and hope for Glinda, the good witch to show up and cast a removal spell on all Japanese beetles on the planet - now we're talking peace on earth. 

I also plan on mowing less often - keep the lawn on the tall side which adult females don't like. Their preference for egg laying is moist, low cut grass. Keeping the lawn on the drier side during egg laying (June when they emerge till gone) is also effective on egg mortality. Just use care to keep any trees in or near lawns watered so they aren't stressed.

For grub control I will use a one-time only needed application of Acelepryn. This is a granular product that is safe around people, pets and pollinators - provided no blooming clover or dandelions are around which bees may be visiting. Always mow prior to application of any granular product. I will apply Acelepryn by mid-June. 

As we enter the 2018 Japanese beetle season - for additional information you're welcome to view my Google website on JB management in Colorado. In one place you'll find additional research-based fact sheets, plant lists JBs prefer and mostly avoid and more. Find the link HERE.