Questions about bugs...Holes in Eggplant leaves?

[minu]

I just put in Eggplant transplants (bought from a local nursery) about 3 weeks ago and I noticed holes in the leaves....some of them are fairly large. I looked at the leaves but can't find any obvious bugs. Who's eating the leaves and how do I deal with them?

Also noticed these tiny black bugs on spinach that was planted back in Nov which never took off and were abandoned and have now suddenly started growing heavily. They are on the underside of the spinach leaves and don't come off too easily even upon washing the leaves.

Also found a bunch of short, lumpy type of insect crawling in the soil. Kids call is rolypoly but not sure if that is a real name.

Am new to gardening and slowly finding out that it is not just enough to feed and water.....have to deal with the bugs too. Any recommendations on books that I can read will be appreciated.

Thanks
Minoti

[pharmerphil]

flea beetles

[cynthia_h]

If I haven't mentioned it before, please get a copy of the Sunset Western Garden Book. There's a section with photos of pests and their damage as well as management controls for each pest.

There's also an independent book by Sunset called something like "Garden Problem Solver" which discusses diseases, insects, critters, and invasive plants (weeds).

The roly-polies are harmless. If you have a compost pile, they'll love it. They prefer decaying vegetation and don't attack live plants. I think they're cute, too!

Cynthia H.
Sunset Zone 17, USDA Zone 9

[elevenplants]

Yep. Flea beatles.

[green~acres]

What do I do to take care of a flea beetle problem? Mine are looking like Minu described. Thanks, Julie

[elevenplants]

Flea beatles are very hard to discourage. I use a combination of neem oil and BT..with a little heartfelt prayer and some magic words. They're hard to see, but if you look really close around the holes, you'll see tiny black bugs that jump like fleas....flea beatles! And they have voracious appetites! I have also used garlic spray with some success. Like many garden pests, it's an ongoing battle utilizing a whole arsenal of possible solutions to control these tiny biters.

If anyone knows any better control methods, I'm all ears myself.

Rebecca