Now the Colorado Potato Beetles have arrived. Will pyrethin work?

16 years ago

I have kept the flea beetles at bay with a pyrethin spray, but now the colorado potato beetles have arrived, laying orange larvae on the leaves and the adults munching away. I have 8, 18-foot rows of potatoes, so it's too many to go through by hand and pluck off every darn one and destroy each leaf with larvae.

I sprayed last night with a pyrethin spray but not sure if that works on colorado potato beetles. Or for the larvae. Will this be sufficient?

Or if there is a better organic spray, please let me know.

Thanks!

Sort by:Oldest

Comments (7)

anney
16 years ago
Here are the results of one study:

The Colorado Potato Beetle is one of the most important pests of potatoes. The effect of various plant protection products with neem oil (NeemAzal-T/S), pyrethrum/rape oil (Spruzit Neu) and Bacillus thuringiensis-B.t.t.(Novodor Neu) against this pest was compared in a field experiment 2004. Neem oil and B.t.t. reduced the number of Colorado Potato Beetle larvae as well as the losses of plant material due to feeding by beetle larvae significantly in the same way. Beneficial arthropods were not affected. The application of pyrethrum/rape oil has shown in this experiment no significant effect to reduce the number of Colorado Potato Beetles. However, the number of beneficial arthropods was reduced from 2.2 individuals/plant (untreated control) to 1.0 individual/plant.

Here is a link that might be useful: Comparative investigations to control Colorado Potato Beetle
kygirl99
Original Author
16 years ago
is pyrethrum the same as pyrethin? similar spellings, but not sure...

I went out and all the adults were gone but orange larvae were still on the underside of the leaves. They look almost like the roe at a japanese restaurant. they aren't moving but lined up in rows on the underside of the leaf.
Related Discussions
HELP Colorado Potato Beetle Invasion
Q
Comments (14)
I don't have a lot of plants so hand picking them for now seems to be working. I take my soon to be 6 year old daughter out with me, I search and she destroys. She gets a kick out of it and it gives her something to do and she is learning about bad bugs already! It really seems to have slowed the invasion down!
...See More
possibly a stupid question about potatoes and flea beetles
Q
Comments (5)
I'm thinking that it isn't flea-beetles bothering your potatoes. Much more likely CPB's, the foliage is withering due to them and the natural cycle. Flea-beetles don't typically bother potato plants, they tend to focus on very young seedlings in dryish conditions. Nor have I ever seen "thick bunches" of them, they are quick-moving (hence the name) and one rarely sees them. CPB is sluggish and is easily found in bunches.
...See More
Colorado Potato Beetles and the Turtle
Q
Comments (2)
Jan, Last night I saw one more adult Colorado Potato Beetle on a potato plant, and I left it for Mr. (or Ms.) Turtle. I hope he or she found it and ate it. I rely heavily (almost entirely) on beneficial birds, reptiles, amphibians and insects to control pest insects in my garden. It works. I know it works. Sometimes it is very hard--even exceptionally hard--to be be patient and wait for the process to work, but I really do try. Here's another example of how I didn't wait, and then regretted it. I overwintered some potted angel's trumpets (both brugmansias and angel trumpets) in my barn/garage last winter. It was the first time I'd overwintered them there, having previously kept them either inside (but there's too many for that now, and they are too big) or by overwintering them in the tornado shelter in a dormant state. It stayed warm enough here this past winter that the angel's trumpets remained leafed out, although a couple of them dropped some leaves when we when down to 18 degrees a couple of nights, but then leafed right out again. A lot of them kept blooming into December and January and others started blooming in February. Every morning (unless it was very cold), I'd open the garage door and let the sunshine come in, or I'd drag them out into the sunshine. One day in Feb. or earliest March, I noticed one plant was covered in aphids. Since I assumed lady bugs were still hibernating because it was still pretty chilly, I sprayed the plant with neem oil. (I did look for lady bugs and didn't find any on any of the angel's trumpets before I sprayed.) The neem oil took care of almost all the aphids. Two days later a mama lady bug showed up, and within a couple of days we had lady bug larvae everywhere. So, you see, if I had been patient for a day or two longer, the lady bugs would have shown up and I wouldn't have had to spray the neem oil. I really need to work on being more patient. I'll try to write later today or tonight when I come inside from the garden about how to attract more beneficial insects to your garden, and why you'd want them there. I need to hurry up and get outside now before it is too hot to be productive out there. You also can search this forum by typing "beneficial insects" into the search box and read old threads too. I know I've written about beneficials a gazillion times. Dawn
...See More
Colorado potato beetles are here - how to protect tomatoes early?
Q
Comments (10)
I tried to find the 5% Rotenone online but couldn't. Where do you buy that? **** Check Johnny's Selected Seeds b'c that's where I bought it but I haven't checked lately b'c I haven't had any CPB problems where I now live. I'm a bit surprised that Google didn't give you some sources. Maybe even try Peaceful Valley Farms in CA as a last resort. If you're getting the adults fine, but the orange eggs laid before you got them are still going to go to the larval form. By killing off the adults you should have less larvae emerging and that may mean that you can control/prevent that just by manual means. Carolyn
...See More
jimster
16 years ago
The orange things are eggs, not larvae.

Jim
anney
16 years ago
kygirl

The pyrethrins are the natural insecticides existing in pyrethrum plants.

Here is a link that might be useful: Pyrethrin insecticides
Violet_Z6
16 years ago
Take the time to learn that there is not a "cure all" for every pest at every stage of it's life cycle. Some won't work if it's going to rain. Some don't work well if it's too hot, etc.

Pest management is complex, if you wish to use chemical products, do so responsibly which goes further than reading the label. If you want to learn, a good place to start is here:

Integrated Pest Management
This lecture is presented in two parts. Each part is 90-minutes in length. Recorded in Sacramento County in California's Sacramento Valley, this lecture is byMary Louise Flint, Ph.D., Director, IPM Education and Publications, UC Statewide IPM Project and Extension Entomologist & Cooperative Extension Specialist.

Education:
B.S. Plant Science, University of California, Davis
Ph.D. Entomology, University of California, Berkeley

Appointment:
100% Cooperative Extension

Research Interests:
Integrated pest management of landscape, agricultural and garden pests; biological control of arthropod pests; alternatives to pesticides; adoption of alternative practices by practitioners; innovative delivery of pest management information.

Topics discussed in the Integrated Pest Management Lecture:

* IPM references and resources
* Preventing pest problems
* Natural common enemies
* Making less toxic pesticide choices
* Controlling aphids, scales, caterpillars, coddling moths, tree borers, snails and slugs, and lawn insects.

You can watch the programs now online:

Just make sure you have Real Player installed or download it free.

Integrated Pest Management Part 1 90 minutes

Integrated Pest Management Part 2 90 minutes

You'll want to bookmark the following link to Professor Flint's Lab Research on:
Controlling Pests in Gardens and Landscapes: Vegetables and Melons

I promise you'll learn one or two things to put in your gardening bag of pest management arsenals.

Here is a link that might be useful: Potato Tuberworm aka Colorado Potato Beetle (Phthorimaea operculella) Control
loodean
16 years ago
Colorado Potato Beetles are now resistant to most all currently formulated pesticides. Develop resistance very quickly...
billv
16 years ago
Bt used to work well for me but for the last 4 years I have put my potatos under row cover when they first come up and left them there until around mid-June when the temperatures reach the upper 80's for highs. I always remove the covers and hill the potatos once, and usually twice, before removing the covers for good. The covers work great if you don't let the potatos get too hot under the covers. Not sure it's necessary but I also spray with a combination of Bt and Sevin before putting the covers back on.

Now the Colorado Potato Beetles have arrived. Will pyrethin work?

Comments (7)

anney

kygirl99
Original Author

Related Discussions

jimster

anney

Violet_Z6

loodean

billv

COMPANY

BUSINESS SERVICES

GET HELP

CONNECT WITH US

Now the Colorado Potato Beetles have arrived. Will pyrethin work?

Comments (7)

anney

kygirl99Original Author

Related Discussions

jimster

anney

Violet_Z6

loodean

billv

COMPANY

BUSINESS SERVICES

GET HELP

CONNECT WITH US

kygirl99
Original Author