Hello everyone
What a great site !!
Having combed through it I find no reference to Hister Beetles and boy are they causing me heartache so I'll just have to de-lurk and ask.
The potato plants in my newly revamped deep soil raised bed garden
(guess what, I got the Ed Smith Bible for Christmas) were doing good but now the base of the plants are being eaten through by what has been identified as Hister beetles. They stay just under the surface of the soil and chomp right through the main stalk. Thats all they eat. My fine healthy plants topple over like felled trees. It seems that they usually eat flies eggs and grubs but they sure like my spud plant stems.
Anyone else ever had this problem and have a solution ?
Regards
Mick.
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Anonymous
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Gardener Don
- Cool Member
- Posts: 66
- Joined: Sat Apr 07, 2007 10:05 am
- Location: Southern Illinois, zone 5b
Ticklemouse,
Well, I thought I had heard everything, but Hister Beetles eating potato plants??? Are you sure you have identified them right? Typically Hister only eat maggots in carrion. Hister beetles are either shiny black or metallic green and to me, look a lot like japanese beetles. Anyway, I would get out my sevin and give those potato's a good dose. You darn sure don't want to lose your crop. Good Luck and keep us posted. Maybe I ought to check my garden in the morning. Gardener Don
Well, I thought I had heard everything, but Hister Beetles eating potato plants??? Are you sure you have identified them right? Typically Hister only eat maggots in carrion. Hister beetles are either shiny black or metallic green and to me, look a lot like japanese beetles. Anyway, I would get out my sevin and give those potato's a good dose. You darn sure don't want to lose your crop. Good Luck and keep us posted. Maybe I ought to check my garden in the morning. Gardener Don
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Anonymous
I recieved an email this morning from someone thinking it may be a Scarab, possibly a rice Beetle.Gardener Don wrote: Well, I thought I had heard everything, but Hister Beetles eating potato plants??? Are you sure you have identified them right? Gardener Don
I've uploaded a picture at
https://www.flickr.com/photos/ticklemouse
Any comments welcome.
Regards Mick
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Gardener Don
- Cool Member
- Posts: 66
- Joined: Sat Apr 07, 2007 10:05 am
- Location: Southern Illinois, zone 5b
Hello Mick,
I'm sorry I cannot identify the little bugger and would suggest you take one to your local extension office for identification. There is a site sponsered by the Iowa State University Entomology department that I have found useful. It is bugguide.net . You might want to give it a try. Anyway, in the meantime, I would load up my sevin sprayer and give them a good dose of it. Good Luck, Don
I'm sorry I cannot identify the little bugger and would suggest you take one to your local extension office for identification. There is a site sponsered by the Iowa State University Entomology department that I have found useful. It is bugguide.net . You might want to give it a try. Anyway, in the meantime, I would load up my sevin sprayer and give them a good dose of it. Good Luck, Don