By Colby Williams

news@joplinglobe.com

Japanese beetles are devastating local flowerbeds and have gardeners in a frenzy.

“I started noticing them about four or five days ago,” said Yogi Hicks, of Alba. “So I got my spray out and my insecticide didn’t even phase them.”

Hicks is surprised by the number of Japanese beetles he is noticing this summer. Others have seen an increase, too.

“This year is the worst that I’ve seen,” said Robert Ellison, of the Botany Shop Garden Center in Joplin. “Typically, people are either unaware of Japanese beetles or they’re overrun.”

Ellison has talked with at least 30 customers who are reporting infestations.

“A couple weeks ago everyone who walked through the door had Japanese beetle problems,” said Gayl Navarro, owner of Ozark Nursery. “And that’s just people paying attention to their plants.”

A gardener for 10 years, Hicks always pays careful attention. When he saw the beetles on his hibiscus and roses, he knew he had a problem.

“My roses are my pride and joy,” Hicks said. “That’s what really devastates me, when I see my rosebush get all eaten up like that.”

Life cycle

According to the University of Missouri extension, adult Japanese beetles usually surface in June and live 30 to 45 days. They are a half-inch in length and have a shiny green and brown body. They are most active on sunny days and in groups. They devour the tissue between veins, giving leaves a lacy appearance.

Once the beetles begin feeding, the victim plant attracts more beetles, which many say is the result of an odor emitted by the feeding process.

More than 300 species of plants are prone to Japanese beetle infestation, including those with soft leaves or fruit. Currently, urban lawns and flower and vegetable gardens are the primary targets, but farmers in southern Illinois and southeast Missouri report cornfields being overrun.

During the feeding, the beetles breed and lay eggs beneath grassy areas. They prefer well-irrigated places, such as golf courses, cemeteries and healthy lawns. The grubs then feed on grass roots, which causes gradual wilting and thinning.