You stroll out to your garden, cup of coffee in hand, to admire your lovely roses; but as you bend to smell the sweet fragrance of your beautiful flowers, you notice holes in some of the leaves. Looking more closely, you realize that some leaves have been completely eaten away, and some of the flowers have holes in them as well. What’s going on? It could be Japanese beetles.
Japanese beetles are pretty easy to identify; and if you are seeing the damages they leave behind, it is likely you will see the beetles themselves. Strangely beautiful, these beetles are roughly ⅜ of an inch long and ¼ of an inch wide and have a shiny, metallic-green body with pretty iridescent copper-covered elytra (wing covers) and green thoraxes and heads. Japanese beetle larvae, also called grubs, are whitish and C-shaped with a brown head and three pair of legs near their head.
In Japan, these beetles are not very destructive, as they are controlled by natural predators; but here in North America, they are a serious pest, causing damage to around 300 species of plants including: linden trees, birch trees, crape myrtles, canna, hops, grapes, rose bushes, and many other plants. They also feed on crops such as: beans, strawberries, tomatoes, peppers, cherries, plums, pears, peaches, corn, and raspberries. The grubs of these beetles feed on the roots of grass and can do significant damage to a lawn.
Can this problem be solved with beetle traps?
Japanese beetle traps consist of a pair of crossed walls with a bag or plastic container underneath that is baited with either a floral scent, pheromone scent, or both. While, in theory, this should work, studies conducted at Eastern Illinois University and the University of Kentucky suggest that beetles attracted to the traps often do not end up in the traps, but instead, land on nearby plants. This means that even more damage is caused along the flight path of the beetles and also near the traps. The best way to arrest the damage caused by Japanese beetles is to get professional pest control.
If you live in our Minnesota service area, our QualityPro and GreenPro certified team can help. There are over 22,000 pest control companies operating in the United States, and only 3% are designated QualityPro. This mark of excellence given by the National Pest Management Association ensures that you will get the highest level of service, every time.
Japanese beetles may be beautiful, but they are also destructive. Get them under control with Adam’s Pest Control.
