by Saffyre Falkenberg
If you ’re growingasparagusin your home garden , the asparagus beetle is a pest you will be all too familiar . This annoying insect is about half a centimetre long and is a metallic bluish - black colour with white or chickenhearted spots on its back . Its back also has a ruby border . The larva are fat , greyish - green grub with black heads . The eggs of the asparagus beetle are small , brown ovals and will unremarkably be present in copiousness .
There is also another specie of asparagus mallet known as the spotted asparagus mallet . The spotty Asparagus officinales mallet ’s body is like to that of a ladybeetle ’s , but it has a heavy , red head . The patched asparagus beetle is still a pest to your Asparagus officinales plant , but it only feeds on the asparagus berry , making this eccentric of beetle less of a terror to the plant .
Both the grownup and larvae asparagus mallet will eat the folio off of the asparagus frond . This behavior will slowly drink down the flora , as the edible asparagus is deprived of its power to absorb and process sunlight as nutrients . Asparagus beetle will also chew on the stem turn of the asparagus and lie eggs on them , which will make the asparagus inedible . The larvae will give on the plants for a few workweek before they falling to the priming coat and pupate .
Just one year of asparagus crop will oftentimes see two or three generation of the mallet . The grownup beetle go into a hibernating state underground or in leafy arena during the winter month .
An Asparagus officinales beetle plague can break an asparagus crop , which can be very frustrating for gardener who put so much sentence and exertion into develop their works . There are many ways a gardener can fight the edible asparagus mallet at dwelling , using both natural and artificial methods .
1. Physical Removal of Asparagus Beetles
One of the easy ways to cover with minor asparagus beetle infestations is to physically remove the germ from the plant . blame off adult beetles or larvae by hand , and pitch them into a bucketful filled with fulsome water in fiat to easy vote down them .
During this process , ensure to scrape off any of the brown eggs you see on the asparagus spear . This surplus step will help oneself break the sprightliness cycle . The adults are able to fly , so make indisputable to correspond your garden daily .
2. Brushing to Get Rid of Asparagus Beetles
If you do n’t want to pick off the insect by hand , you could use a broom or another brush with stiff bristles . skirmish over the Asparagus officinales plants with this tool , and the buckram bristles will knock grownup beetle and larvae to the earth .
Have a bucket of soapy weewee useable to drown the adults . The larvae , once on the ground , will commonly not be able to make it back onto a plant .
3. Early Harvest to Control Asparagus Beetles
Another direction to cave in the lifetime cycle of the Asparagus officinales mallet is to reap the shaft of edible asparagus early . verify to check the harvested spears for adults , larvae , and egg , then gargle them down the cesspool .
On asparagus plants with foliage , there will most in all probability be adult beetles . Continued former harvest home will discourage the Asparagus officinales beetle .
4. Other Insects as Predators of Asparagus Beetles
There are many insects that are natural predators of the asparagus beetle . Ladybugs and lacewing fly will eat the ballock and small larva .
There is also a species of humble , black white Anglo-Saxon Protestant that will destruct the edible asparagus mallet egg . The wasp position their own testis within the egg of the edible asparagus beetle during the warm summertime months . Earlier in the class , the wasp will also eat the grownup beetles . These WASP are not useable commercially , but they are of course attracted to asparagus .
5. Animals to Control Asparagus Beetles
Wild birds andbackyard chickenswill readily run through the larvae and the grownup mallet , both directly off the plant and from the ground . Allowing chicken to scrounge in the garden over the summer month will easily rid a garden of asparagus beetle without damaging the asparagus plants .
6. Neem Oil to Treat Asparagus Beetles
For extreme infestations of asparagus beetles , neem rock oil may be your last resort as far as natural options go . generously slather the spears in neem oil when it becomes clear that harvesting is not potential . check that to apply the neem oil each workweek to any Modern spears . Do not use neem oil color if the low , smutty wasps are present .
7. Insecticides for Asparagus Beetles
Only apply commercial insecticides as a last recourse . Gardeners can spray chemicals , such as pyrethrins , malathion , and permethrin , for destroy prominent infestation of asparagus beetles . These pesticide should not have any tenacious - term effects on your garden . Do not use any pesticides that contain carbaryl , as carbaryl will kill bees and otherhelpful pollinator . Be very careful with using and storing pesticides ; follow the directions on the containers precisely .
8. Clean Garden Area to Prevent Asparagus Beetles
One fashion to keep the propagation of the asparagus beetle is to check that that the garden beds are clean and clear . By doing this , you will be capable to prevent the adult beetle from receive places to hibernate during the winter month . Taking preventive natural action will make trusted you ’ll have fewer cuss around during the new season .
Asparagus beetles can be a huge problem for anyone growing asparagus in their dwelling house garden . The larvae and the adult can both be very damaging to the leave of absence and the shank of the edible asparagus plant life and can even make harvesting hard . Many of the method for getting rid of the asparagus mallet demand physically removing them or relying on other insects and fauna to deplete the beetle . In the event of a really bad plague , neem oil or pesticides may be the only way to get the problem under control . test to catch the trouble early , and you ’ll be enjoying a bountiful harvest of Asparagus officinales from your garden .
Want to learn more about how to prevent and control Asparagus Beetles?
University of Minnesota Extension research Asparagus Beetles in Home GardensPlanet Natural overlay Asparagus Beetle ControlGardening Know How explores Controlling Asparagus BeetlesPennsylvania State University insure Asparagus BeetlesMother Earth News covers Pest Control : Asparagus Beetles Organic Control
