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Japanese Beetles
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A pest of lawns and landscape plants -
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Summary: The larvae, or white grubs,
of Japanese beetle feed on the roots of grasses
while the adult beetles feed on a wide variety of
landscape plants. These beautifully ornate beetles
can be an extremely destructive turf and landscape
pest.
Jack DeAngelis, PhD
OSU Ext. Entomologist (ret.)
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What are Japanese
beetles?
Japanese beetles
(right) are important turf and landscape pests in
the eastern US. The adults are roughly 3/8" long
with coppery wing covers, metallic green back and a
row of white tufts along the sides. Adults feed on a
wide variety of plants where they "skeletonize"
leaves (remove leaf tissue between the veins).
Japanese beetles belong to a large family of ornate
beetles called scarabs (Scarabidae).
Japanese beetle larvae,
or white grubs, are typical of other scarab
larvae. Larvae live in the soil where they feed on
plant roots and can do serious damage. Larvae are
white with a brownish head capsule and three pairs
of legs (see the white
grub article for a picture). The "tail" end is
usually packed with ingested soil particles and
larvae are generally bent into a characteristic "C"
shape as well.
common misspelling:
Japanese beatle
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Japanese
beetle adult ~ 3/8" long; photo by
David Cappaert, www.forestryimages.org
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Life history of Japanese
beetles
Adult beetles emerge from
the soil in mid-summer. Adults feed for a few days
then female beetles begin to lay eggs back in the
soil. Larvae develop in the soil during the fall and
spring, feeding on roots, ready to emerge as adults
the following summer. Root feeding is a major but
unseen part of the damage from these beetles.
Can I control Japanese
beetles?
Adult beetles can be
hand-picked from plants and dropped into soapy water.
Plant foliage can be treated with insecticide to
prevent feeding and larvae can be treated with a
special microbial insecticide applied to the soil (see
below). Since Japanese beetle has only one generation
per year it is possible to significantly reduce their
population in a given area with proper treatments.
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Least-toxic insecticides
and traps
EcoPCO WPX (right) is a botanical
insecticide that can be used to treat landscape
plants against Japanese beetle feeding. Neem oil
insecticides are also effective feeding deterrents but
must be re-applied every few days as long as beetles
are present. And, Japanese beetle traps are very effective
for adult control and as a way to determine if this
pest is present when populations are low. See Related
Articles below for more information about
least-toxic insecticides.
Milky Spore controls
soil pests
Japanese beetle larvae
and other white grubs can be controlled with a bacterial insecticide
called "Milky Spore". Milky Spore is applied to the
soil where, over time, the bacteria build up and
infect larvae. Milky spore is very safe and does not
infect other organisms. Milky spore may take several
years to become effective but should be a part of your
arsenal if this pest is an ongoing problem in your
landscape. Milky Spore insecticide is available at
some lawn and garden stores or online here.
Least-toxic
Botanical (Plant-based) Insecticides
Using Neem Oil
Insecticides in the Garden
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Mission: To
provide accurate, up-to-date and unbiased information
for solving common insect and mite problems around
your home, business and landscape using least-toxic
methods.
Jack DeAngelis,
Ph.D.
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