Japanese Beetles

I think most of us who garden are familiar with the invasive pest known as the Japanese beetle. While they were introduced into Wisconsin in the 1950's, they exploded in the southern part of the state in later 1990's into the 2000's. They are a pest that likes to destroy certain plants.

The first time I noticed a Japanese beetle was quite some time ago, but within that explosion time frame. That year I had planted Blue Lake pole beans, in lieu of my standard Blue Lake bush bean. The bean plant was nice and healthy until one day in early July I was in the garden checking my plants and noticed that the leaves were all skeletonized, and that is where I noticed the beetle. I did not know what it was at the time, but the internet, even before AI, quickly informed me of the pest. 

Three Japanese Beetles partying on a raspberry plant leaf

Currently, they mostly attack our raspberries and roses, but have been seen on other plants, such as Hollyhock. They burrow into the rose bud such that when it opens you find them feasting on the rose petals. We pull them off the plants as we come across them. I used to simply hold it and take my thumb nail and puncture through the bug, but that got messy, and would take me away from raspberry picking as my hands smelled like Japanese Beetle. It is not a pleasant odor. Now, I pick them off and place them in a container of water and some Dawn dish soap. I am not concerned about killing an invasive specie. A couple years ago camping at Mirror Lake Gypsy moths, now called Sponge moths were literally falling out of trees, and I asked a ranger what to do and she said smash them. That made sense to me. We got one container filled with the beetles, and did not know what quite to do with them, so I dug a hole and dumped them in. 

When I look at the raspberry plants and see them on the foliage or on a berry, it is not uncommon for two to be hooked up, likely fertilizing eggs to continue the spread of this pest. I have to say, they are not usually too shy and I have even come across a fivesome. I am quickly becoming an expert on the sexual habits of Japanese Beetles. While they like the tops of the leaves to mate, some, in this recent hot weather, hook up on the underside of a leaf. I take it they are not monogamous.

Pulling them off can be a challenge, particularly if you already have some in a closed hand. In the closed hand, the sharp little legs like to stick to you hand, or even worse they are trying to wiggle out between the fingers or the palm and finger tips. Perhaps the spot most vulnerable is the between the little finger and the palm . They vibrate the hand which provides an odd sensation. With several in the hand you try to keep them in before they can escape and dump them all in the water-soap mix. This is not always successful.  

Cucumber leaves eaten off plant, likely be deer

If you have not tried to pick a Japanese beetles off a plant and hold them in your closed hand I suggest you do so. It becomes more difficult as you add the beetle to the hand with several already vying to get out.  I do have to say, picking the fivesome off was rather difficult to make sure I got all. I think I put my handover the group and pulled on the leaf. Sometimes I am fortunate to get them all, other times not so much. 

The beetles do three things, eat, have sex, and party. At some point the beetles will lay the eggs, which have a 10 to 12 day period to hatch. The females burrow into the ground lay the eggs and depart to eat, party and have sex some more. As much as they destroy my garden plants, the majority of their 10-12 month cycle is spent underground eating roots of grass. I get the feeling that we will forever be fighting the Japanese beetle. It is too bad the deer don't go for them instead of my cucumber and other plants. Or, that the Canadian wildfire smoke does not hamper them.

If it is not one pest, Japanese Beetles as an example, it is other pests, deer eating plants, squirrels stealing out bean seeds, rabbits nibbling on lower leaves, chipmunks destroying plants. And other creatures I am not aware, perhaps racoons, groundhogs or whatever.