Japanese Beetles

[Danny]

Japanese beetles ---absolutely LOVE grape foliage. If you have these beetles in your part of the world, how do you take care of them? When I lived in northern Tennessee a few years ago, they had just arrived. Now I live in south TN and it's almost like they followed me here.


I've tried the traps you get at Lowes, but they get filled (over a gallon of bugs) in less than a day. Finally just put Sevin on the grape vines. They also like my peach trees, apple trees,and an elm tree in my side yard (after they've eaten the grape vines, though).


Does anyone know how large vinyards handle these bugs? They can strip a grave vine in no time.

 

[grapeman]

Danny,
This is the first year I have ever seen a Japanese beetle here, so I 've done some research on them to educate me in their control. The traps aren't really a trap- more of a diversionary tactic. They use a pheromone to attract the beetles, so you locate it away from your area you want treated. The idea is to draw them away from what you want to keep. Sevin is widely used in their control. I have applied it twice this season. A longer term control is the introduction of Milky Spore disease to control the grubs, but this needs to be treated over a wide area to be effective.


I assume large vineyards in the east rely on their spray programs to keep them in check- integrating some treatment into their program. Many growers are using IPM(integratede pest management) in their programs to limit the amount of spray applied.


Finally, yes they did follow you there.

 

[winesnob]

Sorry to hear about your problem Danny, though I don't have a vineyard yet (hopefully I'll plany some vines in the Spring), I am all so familiar with the pests destroying plants. Their larvae (white grubs) destroyed my lawn last year. If you kill the grubs and your neighbors do the same, you won't have a problem. I have not seen any of those pests this year.
Of course I use the grub-x in the short term because Milky Spore takes 2-3 years to start working, but lasts 15-20 years. If you do use the traps, make sure you place it away from your vines.
Good luck!!

 

[masta]

We have been fighting the beetles this year and has been a real battle...worst I have ever seen. I have 6 traps located around the yard but don't seem to be attracting that many visitors.


I sprayed my vines again last night with Sevin to try and stay ahead of them.

 

[Danny]

Sevin definately works, but is a pain to apply every time it rains. Looks like, at least for this year, most are now gone.


I like the idea of treating the soil, buta farmer hasa large field of soy beans just a couple of hundred feet from the vines. Maytry it anyway.


Did put the trap I seta couple of hundred feet away from my plants. It did divert them away, but, as I mentioned above, filled upwith thousandsof bugs in less than a day.


Pretty gross smelling, too, after in the sunfor a few days.


Neighbor's dog stole the bag one time after filled. Sure my neighbor got athrill when he found it.

 

[Danny]

Has become an annual battle now from the first of June till the end of July. Keep covering my grapevines with Seven or spray with Malathion. They don't seem to like my muscadines, though. At least, not as much.
Bet I killed 10,000 this year. At least they're gone now.

 

[AlFulchino]

not saying this is your answer...not even saying i know this conclusively is gonna hold true.....

my first yr w the vineyard i had the jb's....enough to get the sevin/carbaryl.....right when i went to spray...they were gone....yrs 2, 3 and 4...jb's only did some extremely light cosmetic injury....and unless you literally walked all the rows would have given it a nod as an afterthought.....four yrs...not one insecticide...i wonder why

this year i started a test vineyard at my house...jb's everywhere on the vines....just recently have they stopped their attack...so june and july were bad this first yr

i keep a bare vineyard floor at my commercial vineyard...i have been wondering these past three yrs if the steady inter row cultivation to keep the floor weed free has interfered w their life cycle....the test vineyard had grass in between the row...so i am looking to see how next yr goes at the test vineyard...if it hold true, i will post it

 

[Danny]

I've more or less resigned myself to the fact that the first of June till the end of July will be my annual JB war. I don't have a large vineyard, just a few grapevines and some muscadines that I really enjoy. The JB's, though, also love some cherry-like shrubs I have in my yard and found this year they also like Okra plants. Let them have all the okra they wanted since has HUGE leaves and grows faster than grass. At least, most stayed off my muscadines.

 

[BonnieJoy]

About 3 years ago we bought a special nematode (be careful, there are 2 kinds), mixed them with water & sprayed them over theentire vineyard floor. They multiply after application and last many years. Just like Milky Spores, theyeat the Jap Bettlelarvae.We've neverneeded to break out the Sevin since seeding our vineyard with these tiny organisms.

 

[HoCo Al]

Here in Central Maryland our Japanese beetle population has been relatively small for the last couple of years. But they have been attacking the grapes and brambles some this year. On both the grapes and blackberries they mostly concentrate on leaves near the top of the trellis. So my approach is to wait until I see significant damage on a handful of leaves, and then I spray Sevin along the top of the vines only. That is quick and easy, plus I am hoping that it minimizes the destruction of the beneficials.

This season I have only had to do this two or three times so far, and at this point they don't seem to be a problem any more. But I'll keep scouting for them and may spray again if they come back in any significant volume.

Also, I agree with the eariler poster who said not to put beetle traps anywhere near the grapevines. You will just attract them from you neighbors and it will make matters worse for sure. I know this from experience; I learned it the hard way a few years ago

.

 

[Randoneur]

I'm in middle TN - so I know how bad they are here. I've found Sevin to be the best pesticide for them. Good thing is that they are manageable with a good spray program. There will still be some leaf loss in spite of the spray, but that is not all bad, and there will be plenty of new leaf growth after they are good. I consider them to be a minor pest.