asparagus beetles are grody to the max
I just spent 2 hours squishing the larvae of asparagus beetles. They are trying to take over our beautiful bed of asparagus…asparagus that will be ready to harvest next year assuming that these bugs don’t kill it first. Aargh. Times like these I get tired of “organic” and just want something napalm-ish to get rid of these grubby little things.
But no, I am doing the right thing and hunting them down. Squashing their guts out, one fat grey larvae at a time (well, when I get a good branch I might pop four or five at once!). Disgusting and frustrating. Supposedly if you leave their guts on the plant it will attract predatory insects like wasps. I sure hope so! I can already see where they’ve been eating the asparagus as some branches are brown and dried up while others are still ferny and green.
It is easier to kill them before they morph into beetles, though. The beetles are tricky and will drop straight to the ground if they see you coming after them, hiding instantly in the mulch. At least the larvae are slow and easy to catch. Last year we had the beetles, not this many, and it was almost impossible to kill them. They survive the winter in mulch so now we’ve got to rake all the mulch off to make the garden less comfortable for them.
I have also been told that neem oil will help prevent this infestation but it might be too late to “prevent” an infestation — looks to be in full swing at this point. Doesn’t hurt to try, though.
You know you’ve got asparagus beetles if:
1. your asparagus has grubs all over it
2. red beetles with black & white stripes are crawling around your asparagus
3. some of your asparagus is brown and brittle and it’s only May
And…we are 3 for 3. Crap.
Larvae morph into brilliant beetles and gardeners into steely earth warriors!
(Great blog, Erin.)
Meditative work: Think of your work as feeding the predatory wasps, who just might take up residence, so that next year, they are already there, waiting those grubby little bugs as soon as they hatch. Think that next year, you won’t have to squash any/as many grubs, because your partnership with the wasps will be paying dividends. You’ll be enjoying the asparagus!
The fact that they are” tricky and will drop straight to the ground if they see you coming after them, hiding instantly in the mulch” is extremely helpful. I put two or three drops of soap in a small bucket of water(I used an empty yogurt container–the big kind). Hold it under the branch and they will drop right into it and cannot get out. I found it easier to get rid of the adults than the grubs–the idea of squishing them really grosses me out, but I will have to try, since the garlic pepper spray I made had absolutely no effect on them—aargh, and I finally got my first harvest this year, too!
Cynthia — I’m with you. Killing all the grubs was gross and there got to be so many of them that it just wasn’t possible. We try not to spray even “organic” chemicals on the gardens but we used Neem oil this year, which is totally organic and pretty much harmless. It took care of the beetles within 36 hours! Pretty amazing. Just to be sure I followed up with some spinosad which is also organic but just a bit more stringent (I wanted to be SURE that those nasty things were dead!) but that was probably overkill & we could have just used the neem. Good luck