Scarlet beetles (6mm - 8mm long) with black heads eat the leaves, flowers and seedpods of lilies and other members of the lily family. Don't mistake them for ladybirds. Between April and September the beetles lay eggs on the undersides of leaves. After a week they hatch into reddish-brown maggot-like grubs, and feed on the same parts of the plant as the parents. Possibly to deter predators or disguise themselves, the larvae cover themselves in their own wet, black excrement.
Solution
Organic
Pick off the grubs and adults as soon as you see them. The adults will drop to the ground at the slightest touch, so spread newspaper under the plants to catch them. Be quick and crush them under foot or they'll fly off.
Chemical
At the first sign of attack, spray plants with imidacloprid, thiacloprid or sunflower oil. Treatment is more effective on larvae than adults.
Comments and rating
Overall rating (from 7 ratings):
5 out of 5
every year i have to pick these little demons off my lillies their little grubs are a bit grim to remove but using something as easy to obtain as sunflower oil will make my life easier
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5 out of 5
Thank you for the advise I will be trying the sunflower oil! I have read that the insecticide, imidacloprid, you have recommended is possibly linked to honeybee colony collapse - is this true? I am off to stamp on a few lily beetles and spray!
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Have had this problem for 2 years now and will try the sunflower oil. Does anything remain on the plant and go down into the bulb ready to infest next season?
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5 out of 5
I was surprised to read that sunflower oil can work. I will try that this year.
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5 out of 5
last year was my first infestation which i found on my himalayan lilies (cardiocrinums) and hemoracallis. luckily i caught it in time but i gave an oriental lily to my neighbour a couple of years ago which had been completely decimated. i had noticed that the lily wasnt flourishing as it had done in the past and then suddenly it completely died. do you think my lily beetle problem started with the plant that i gave to my neighbour? my lilies completely survived this attack.
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5 out of 5
Last year my hostas were covered in snails, I put them in a pail with salty water which is how I deal with slugs. however the snails were climing out the pail so I put vinegar in the pail as well, As I watched the snail was coming out it's shell, I could'nt stand to see them in agony,so I picked them out and put them back on the Hostas and left them to it. what a woos I am.
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One of my Hemoracallis ( Day Lily) plants, have flowers that do not open and go slimey, does anyone know what is causing this?
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This year for the first time, I've found lily beetles on my garlic and shallot plants, also on the remainder of last years leeks... has anyone else encountered this problem? I didn't know they liked the alium family....
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5 out of 5
Hi, I usually spray my lilies from spring onwards with a mixture of vinegar and teatree oil which usually keeps them free from the lily beetle grubs. This year for some reason I did not get round to it and consequently have the full gunge plus quite a substantial amount of beetles. I should add that they seem to have a preference for the orange lilies rather than the white and yellow. Have learned my lesson now. Therise
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Completely decimated three lillies, utterly horrible little bugs! Will try sunflower oil when I replace them!
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Before using thiacloprid, imidacloprid, acetamocloprid or any other neonicotinoid pesticide, I recommed visiting the Buglife website, to read their report summarising independent research on neonicotinoids. They kill bees & other non-target insects - eg. butterflies etc. Miniscule amounts impair the ability of insect to function resulting inevitably in death. Also, seek out the fact sheets from the US environment agency -you may get a shock! We used to manage without them & can now.
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kaycurtis rated and commented on this article
02 April 2009
5 out of 5
Goodness me , the dreaded Lily beetle along with all the other things that attack our lovely plants, well if you water the plants with vine weeval killer it does help to protect them also against Lily beetles, killing two pests for the price of one!!
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