For those of you dealing with Lily Beetle

[thistle]

I had to replenish my supply of powder today.Rexall have pure Talc with just scent added....very reasonably priced too.I hope it works better than Shoppers'.Joy

I got a good sized container of Talc with just scent added at my local discount store for $2.00 and it is working!!! NO Beetles so far (touch Wood) I am doing the Happy dance.

[Elena Zimmerman]

Okay, you won't believe it. I keep applying talc, and killing beetles that i find. All the beetles I see are lethargic ad come in clasps of 2 or three. They are either hatching or migrate. Overall, i go for 2-3 days between the sightings of a new group of beetles.

But here is an alert for you: 2 days ago, all lilies were clean (and very powdered), but I found beetles munching on the checkered lilies on the woodland bed. Checkered are frita's rather than the true lilies, so I was surprised all the way to the shed to get the talc. Interestingly, they went for checkered lilies, but not for martagons/turkish caps just 2 feet away. So, Turkish caps are still the most unappealing lilies to the beetle.

Yesterday, I squashed a red pest on a tulip (but the tulip looked undamaged). Are they getting desperate or what?

[Eeyore]

Foreverose, try the talc on them or wipe the bottom of the leaves with a damp cloth. Tedious work but probably the only way to deal with the pests.

Joy - are you saying the Shoppers brand didn't work for you?

[agedgardener2]

It may have killed some but when the sun came out today they were everywhere! I treated the to the pure talc from Rexall so we will see what happens.I'm not planting any new lilies yet.JOY

[Eeyore]

I suspect you actually have to hit them with the talc and that it smothers them. If that is the case I suspect that it should work on the larvae too.

[Elena Zimmerman]

Today I found one more beetle. That's the first one since mid-May. The lilies look healthy, green and absolutely clean!!! I gave them a light dusting just in case that one beetle was the beginning of a locust. But boy, I am so glad I did not dig and dump my lilies. Went as far as to browse lily nook, to see what my heart desires in the fall (I have a spot that needs two outstanding lilies for symmetry.... Very tempted to check garden centers to see if I catch an interesting bulb or two on sale at the 11th hour!

I am so glad someone thought about giving poor lilies a shot of baby powder!

[Clyde212]

I have been "talcing" since 3 weeks ago. It is my Martagons that had it the worst. 3 plants and at least 6 lily beetles a day. Not one since I powered them. I found my first lily beetle since then on a Casablanca that I had not powered yet. They are all getting a dose tomorrow! Clyde

[otnorot]

I hand pick the little boogers then crush them,at this moment I can't find a one. I still check my lilies twice a day.
Bill

[Elena Zimmerman]

Wow, Clyde, your beetles have a refined, expensive tastes in lilies. Mine always studiously avoided Martagons (thanks goodness!). I mean, they went after checkered lily, but not Martagons....

And, that one beetle was a single one!

[HeelsDown]

Bleep, bleep and triple bleep! I was out admiring my newly planted side garden and my hubby noticed these red beetles on all the lillies. As soon as he mentioned it, I remembered this thread and thought "Oh, please no!" But, of course, that's exactly what they are - lily beetles!

When we bought the house, they had asiatic lillies around the front and I liked them so much when they bloomed, I bought more last year (after they'd already flowered) and planted them all around the side garden. Every lily on the side garden has them.

I didn't see any on the pre-existing ones last year so have no idea where they came from. Could it be the extremely wet conditions we've had for the past 3 weeks maybe? I just thought of this b/c last time this year was definitely not this wet and I didn't have any. Course, I have more lillies this year...shrug. Who knows.

But, since I have cats that prowl my yard, my first stop after work is to the drug store for talcum power. Should I be aware of how to use it on the lillies? A good dusting that I have to repeat every so often? Bring my pail of soapy water out too...g'bye sucka's.

Wish me luck...sigh!

Thanks,
Jenn

p.s....should I be worried about the black tips? My neighbour says not to worry - they are just getting ready to bloom...?

https://picasaweb.google.com/schmenn/Ju ... directlink