Major Flea Beatle Problem!

Anyone need some flea beatles, I have plenty to share? . I think I should get a price for the most flea beatles!!!! Help, what is the best way to attack this problem. Not sure if the DE is working on them.

Thanks,

Little Thumb

I used DE and it seemed to work. They did return after a sparing use of DE so I made sure to have some on the plants at all times for several days. I was worried that the leaves might die off with lack of sun actually penetrating through the DE. I figured I was going to lose my 3rd plant to the pests, so I had nothing to lose. It worked. It just took more time than I had hoped for.
Another thread suggested planting mustard greens since that is the only plant these guys like better. My problem is that I love my mustard greens as well.
good luck

I am using Neem oil successfully. When I see the little darlings, I zap them and the leaves with Neem, and they either don't come back or come back in fewer number a few days later. This is my first year to have flea beetles and they are going after the beans.

The other thing that is new this year is tiny green caterpillars eating the beans pods. I need to get some BT but can't find it locally.

I had them in my greens. It was so bad, I only got to pick a few handful that didn't have holes in them. Even though I used DE & sprayed w/ Neem, I think most of the damage had already been done.
I still found 3 flea beatles when I tore out most of the greens (I gave the greens to the chickens).

Here's a very good article about organic control of flea beetle.
http://attra.ncat.org/attra-pub/fleabeetle.html

I just figured out that I have flea beetles. They are chewing the dickens out of my radishes, but everything else seems (?) okay, including the beans directly adjacent to the radishes. The radishes are a trap crop and I am fine with them getting chewed... guess I need to grow more. Or get some mustard seed!

Belfry I wish you were here, I just bought a bag of BT aka Dipel Dust I would share it with you (bought at the feed store). I prefer the spray, but I had to send my husband and this was the easiest to tell him. I didnt know radishes were a "trap" plant. Tiny bluish caterpillars started to eat my radish leaves while I was away, right next to my honey dew and those things just attacked the radishes. The melons are doing fine so far. I had to put the dust out while it was a bit damp, I will go back and see how they are this morning. We also removed 4 tomato horn worms in the last 3 days, but they had been there a bit, while I was away, not enough to damage my tomatoes and peppers too bad though. All the folks have been taught what the signs of them are now I said look for their poo :-D and my husband found two yesterday evening. Will BT work for those horned worms I forgot to finish reading the bag.
Oh and check dollar general for a brand name "bonide" they make something with BT in it, and dollar general sells that brand, not sure if its the BT I didnt need it when I looked. They had stuff to treat for early blight by bonide. One of our local feed stores sells the Bonide product of BT too (that is the liquid).
Happy Bug Hunting to us all !!
Ha-v-v

You can't see it very well, but the radish (yes, that huge thing that looks like a turnip) leaves are riddled with small holes from the flea beetles. The beans just beyond are fine.

Yup, looks like its time to plant more radish. Good luck with the flea beetles.

I just discovered that THEY just discovered the rapini, too. ARGH! (And yes, I just planted more radishes.)

I've got fleas too...garden center sold me an organic spray "Captain Jack's Deadbug Brew" (from Bonide), but I can't tell if it's working because I still see bugs. I've read about others making concoctions of hot pepper oil, onion, and garlic, but here's what someone wrote that might be easier: "... the combination of row covers put on as soon as the seed or seedling is in the ground and water filled bottles covered with tanglefoot (a sticky substance used by the horticulture industry that is water proof) will give you 100% control of FB is less than 48 hours."
I'm gonna try using fine tulle instead of the expensive row cover material, but I may also get some DE to use on any larvae that might be in the soil.

Boy, Mel made this all look so easy!! Maybe they don't get bugs where he lives?

I've got flea beetle problems too. They're affecting my radishes, turnips, bok choi and chinese cabbage. The lettuce and kale seem okay. Spinach and basil both bolted so they are done for now.

I never saw the bugs, but brought one of my radishes to the garden center, and Rick told me that flea beetles are really bad here this year. He suggested a spray with pyrethrin (organic) and another with pyrethrin and neem oil. I opted for the second choice.

Now that I'm looking, I think this is the same problem I have with the elm trees in my yard, too. UGH! The trees had all these little holes in the leaves last year, and again this year. I don't like those trees, so I think they will be coming down in the not-too-distant future. (Should I trust my grandson with the chain saw?)

Radishes, rapini (broccoli raab), and some of my lettuces have been affected. I pulled all of that except for one gargantuan radish today, which I am leaving for now only because the silly thing is 4 feet tall and blooming. My second planting of radishes has sprouted. Rah for trap crops.... I have seen the flea beetles sitting on my bean leaves and a few other places, but so far they do not seem to be destroying them. They think the radishes are much more tasty.

The other day, I took out all the radishes, turnips, bok choi and chinese cabbage that were being attacked by flea beetles - not thinking that I should have a 'sacrificial plant'... so now they have found my kale, which I was just almost ready to harvest.

Do you think I should just transplant the kale to a container, bring it about 15-20 feet from my boxes, and let them have at it?

I'd like to try re-planting the turnips and the chinese veggies, in particular, but I don't want to lose them to this horrible infestation. I can seed them, and put a 'row cover' of tulle over them if you think this would work. Are these beetles likely to have nested in the soil? will I have a problem with them coming up from underneath?

Maybe you could replant your radishes first, in a different location, before your turnips and the others? I have kohlrabi and swiss chard still, and they still prefer the radishes.

I've finally decided what to do with the narrow strip of lawn between my front walk and the fence. Next year that is going to be the trap zone!!

I am going to replant some crucifers soon -- in fact, just got my Baker Creek shipment today! I ordered some Japanese Giant Red Mustard along with the other things, as I read that it is supposedly one of the best trap crops there is. Maybe that will help me keep the others alive.

Oops, too late to edit my last post. Here is my trap radish. It is center screen and the source of those splaying branches with the pink-purple flowers. The radish root itself visible in shadow just to the left of the kohlrabi.

I want to tear it out to make room for other plants, but... I'm a little afraid of what may happen to my other plants if I do.

Ok, I don't have a major flea beetle problem yet, but I did search and find this post about them. They had just started nibbling on my eggplant leaves - that is not allowed - so I zapped 'em with some Neem and then read the link posted by plb from England about mint thought to be a deterrent. I had some mint in a pot and an empty square next to one of my eggplants, so I thought why not? I plopped the pot right in the empty square. We'll see what happens! Thanks, plb, for taking the time to post that link!

I had bigger problems with my eggplants and flea beetles last year in my row garden (before I saw the sfg light!) and am surely gonna try not to let that happen again! Four eggplants growing nicely right now and hope to get more before the summer's over!

sherryeo wrote:Ok, I don't have a major flea beetle problem yet, but I did search and find this post about them. They had just started nibbling on my eggplant leaves - that is not allowed - so I zapped 'em with some Neem and then read the link posted by plb from England about mint thought to be a deterrent. I had some mint in a pot and an empty square next to one of my eggplants, so I thought why not? I plopped the pot right in the empty square. We'll see what happens! Thanks, plb, for taking the time to post that link!

I had bigger problems with my eggplants and flea beetles last year in my row garden (before I saw the sfg light!) and am surely gonna try not to let that happen again! Four eggplants growing nicely right now and hope to get more before the summer's over!

I found something that seems to ward off flea beetles from my eggplant -- red plastic mulch. I first read about it in this article: http://www.veggiegardeningtips.com/eggplants-flea-beetles/

I bought this type from amazon.com:


The first week after I put it around my eggplant (I have 2 Ichiban plants and 2 Rosa Bianca) I saw not one flea beetle -- zilcho. Now that the plants are a little taller I have seen a few, but nothing like before. Then last week I started seeing bigger holes. I went out a night with a flashlight -- earwigs! Arrggghhh! Now I am supplimenting the red mulch with diamotacous earth, being careful not to get any near the blossoms. And this morning I found a dead Colorado potato beetle on the mulch, so I am assuming the DE got him. The latter two bugs make much bigger holes!

I've also read that a peppermint castile soap solution will help. I found a bottle at Target, I am going to try that after the next rain.

I have two blossoms and lots more buds on the Ichiban. The Rosa bianca seems a little slower, but it IS growing. If I get just ONE eggplant to eat, I will consider it a victory because it will be first! The bugs have always won in the past.

It's the battle of the bugs! Game on!

pattipan

Thanks, pattipan.

You know, Squat_Johnson, in a Tomato Tuesday, Upper South post said:

My goal when putting down this red plastic/mulch was to prevent fungal diseases. So far so good, but I found that when a Tobacco Worm feeds on your plants, there is an OBVIOUS trail of droppings. I was able to see them when they were only 1/2" long. I picked about 30 off on Saturday, and only a couple remained Sunday.

So there are obviously several advantages to using the red plastic - being able to see tobacco worm (or tomato horn worm or other such creatures) droppings easily among the more unexpected ones. That, combined with what you say about the flea beetles, really makes me interested in the red plastic. I wonder if it would be too hot on my plants, though, here in coastal Mississippi. It gets HOT here in the summer - temps in the 90s are usual during the day. Anybody have opinions or experience with the red plastic in hotter climates?

I like the red plastic, but I have flea beetles worse than ever. Reading that link I learned that they lay eggs in the soil. I do have some holes in the plastic where I dug a space for the 6" potted tomatoes. I might have to lay down some more plastic. It's always something...