A Gardeners Forum Forums General Discussion The Plants and Flowers Forum Japanese Beetles

I live in South Carolina. Last year we spent a crazy amount of money to install new landscape beds and then fought Japanese Beetles for better than 2 months. Does anybody know how to prevent them from even taking the first bite? They love my Japanese Cherry (ironic right?). Also what about deer and Hawthorne? I tried buying some stuff at Lowes but they just eat the new growth faster than I can get out there to spray it (the spray is NASTY-a mixture of cayenne pepper and some kind of poo)!

Do 2 things:

1 - Buy a japanesse beetle trap and follow the directions. They DO WORK and you WILL catch THOUSANDS of them, I do every year.

2 - Buy Grubex and use that to kill the larva which is down in the grass RIGHT NOW. You apply the granuals with a spreader. Also you could buy Milky spore and spread that down but that will take several years to start really working well.

Tom

i wouldnt buy the traps, i hear they work to well, you will be getting your neighbors beetles as well, from miles around. so if you do get the traps be prepared to buy lots and lots, i know people who tryed it and ended up with even more j-beetles cause it atracts them from miles around.

i just flick em in soapy water, bringing in benifical bugs help in a big way. wasps, praying mantis, ground beetles,ect,

i always wanted to try the milky spore! herd its good for getting rid of grubs to.