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jal_ut
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Joined: Sun Jan 18, 2009 10:20 pm
Location: Northern Utah Zone 5

Click Beetles, Flea Beetles

Here is some information on these common garden pests. I know I have one variety where the adults like to chew small holes in potato, radish, turnip, mustard and sometimes cabbage when small. They will actually sometimes kill the cabbage seedling before it even emerges. The larvae are small and burrow into my potatoes. Thankfully they don't go very deep as a rule and can be peeled off when peeling a little deep.


[url=https://www.ext.colostate.edu/pubs/insect/05592.html]Flea Beetle[/url]

[url=https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Click_beetle]Click Beetle[/url]

In the one paper it mentions diatomaceous earth as a repellant.[/quote]

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Fig3825
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Joined: Fri Jun 17, 2011 3:40 pm
Location: Alexandria, Virginia

I had a few problems with Flea Beetles this past year. They were the least of my problems, but annoying anyway. They hit my tomatoes pretty hard and as you state, they eradicated some of my second planting seedlings. I was lucky at the start because I created raised beds from scratch this year with clean, imported soils. They haven't had a chance to plant their eggs in the soil in preparation for the year, since it was the first year...

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digitS'
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Joined: Sun Sep 26, 2010 1:10 pm
Location: ID/WA! border

Flea beetles aren't a terrible problem in some areas and not at some times during the growing season even where they are a problem in the spring.

Despite being able to "jump" - I don't think they generally go very far during their lifetime. They start in the ground as larva chewing on the roots. Then, mature and chew on the leaves of the plants. Much of their day is spent back on the ground hiding under rocks & things.

They are devastating at times for the brassicas, like you say James. Fig3825, it took me years before I realized that they can set back the tomato plants by weeks in their development. But, they don't usually. Everything, including these guys attack the eggplants!

Notice that the CSU site suggests spinosad. I used that for the 1st time in 2011. It killed 'em.

Click beetles = wireworms. I doubt if there are any organic insecticides that work for pests that live in the soil short of drenching. Not gonna do it. Corn seedlings can be chewed up by wireworms but I don't think that has ever been a real problem in my garden.

Steve

orgoveg
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Joined: Sat Jun 06, 2009 1:06 pm
Location: Ohio

Good info. Thanks



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