Milky Spore- Bacillus popillae-Dutky

17 years ago

We have a very large mole and gopher problem in our yard. We need to do something about this for many various reasons.

I have heard that if you get rid of the grubs the gophers eat, then they won't have reason to come to your yard.

I am not interested in using any kind of poisen or grub killer that can hurt the caterpillars, but has anyone heard about milky spore or bacillus popillae-Dutky? I have heard this will only harm Japenese beetle grubs and nothing else, unlike Bt which will kill all caterpillar larvae.....

Does anyone have any other information on this?

Elaine

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Comments (4)

rhizo_1 (North AL) zone 7
17 years ago
I know for a fact that bacillus strains are very specific. The bacteria species that is used in the control of grubs will not affect caterpillars.

However, you need to know for certain which rodent is bothering your yard. Moles are insectivores while gophers are strict herbivores. Also, moles are quite happy to enter your yard JUST BECAUSE they can! Or you may have a large population of earthworms, their other favorite food.

So! Before you spend the money on MS treatments (which take at least two years to work), dig around to make sure that you have a very high grub population first. There are plenty of web sites that explain how to easily do scout in your yard.
susanlynne48
17 years ago
While we're on the subject, I'd like to know more about this, too, but my question is very specific, Rhizo.

I amended a raised bed last year with some peat, compost, and manure. I noticed this fall, when I was transplanting a few new things into the bed, that it is FULL of grubs. I have a few here and there in my yard, but nowhere do I have grubs like this. My question is whether or not these amendments may have drawn the larvae of the Japanese beetle or June beetle to this bed in particular. I mean, it was so bad, that I couldn't put my trowel in and pull it out w/o a grub or two in the soil.

Appreciate your comments.

Susan
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I read the A&M link. It wouldn't be the first time A&M was wrong about something. Plus they're about as Agri-business as you can get. Their testing of organic methods is often suspect. Their conclusion about the ineffectiveness of Milky Spore could be simply because they didn't account for it's 2-3 year establishment time. I have no proof about the effectiveness of Milky Spore. I applied it at the proper time according to instructions about 25 years ago. I haven't had noticeable grub damage in my lawn since then. Maybe it's luck, or it's attributable to other factors or methods. A few of those years I treated the lawn for fleas, but most years not. I live in South Texas with alkaline clay soil. The only thing milky spore or lawn insecticide treatments can be expected to do is to kill the larvae in the soil. The adults are not feeding when you see them bouncing off your exterior lights or your forehead. They lay their eggs and then die. The prime time to treat them is as soon as you stop seeing them around your outdoor lights. They've laid their eggs and died. The larvae are near the surface, small, and tender. When I dig in my yard, I often see a few grubs. The thing to remember is that, regardless of what control method you use, you can never kill them all. The only time you won't see grubs is when they turn into adults and come out of the ground to fly around bouncing off of things till they lay eggs and die. rangier
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PLEASE let me know if that hot peper spray works!! I have JB's, Orientals and Asiatic beetles in my yard. I just moved into this house in January and dug up lots of lawn to put in garden beds. I amended all the beds with 3 inches of organic matter. Upon digging up the lawn I did find some grubs, but was advised that I should see at least 10 per sq ft, before it's considered a problem. I was finding about 3 per sq ft. The previous owners did not do anything for the yard. The other neighbors told me they never mowed. There were more weeds than lawn! Considering this, I have a lot of beetles in my yard. They are eating the cherry tree I planted, along with everything in the mint family. Including monarda, basil, black and blue salvia, the red annual salvia. Now that they've practically wiped those out they are onto other things such as spicebush, phlox maculata, seedlings of purple coneflower, dianthus, sunflower and zinnia. This morning I found a JB hanging out on my aster. I have to disagree that they only eat stressed plants because they don't seem to be picky in my yard. The cherry tree I planted was literally a stick when I got it. It branched and leafed out very well, this is not a sign of a stressed plant. My monarda was just gorgeous, until something started eating it. I wish there were something that could be put on the plants to help the adult infestations. Even if I do the grub control, I will probably have a problem with adults. Like so may others have said, the whole neighborhood would have to do it. It is making me feel like, being an organic gardener, means not being a gardener at all. What is the point of all the work? When the damn beetles are just going to come eat everything, before the butterflies hummingbirds and myself can enjoy the flowers! I think from now on I will just not plant things they seem to like, which is no fun, because they seem to like half the stuff I have! Oh and I have to say, to the people who have no beetles because they're yard is so healthy. You are probably just lucky enough, to not have high amounts of these pests in your area. Or, you may have lots of neighbors faithfully doing grub control.
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ROFL Maupin! I've tried Maupin's method..doesn't work. I've blended up their little bodies and sprayed...didn't work. I've tried companion planting by planting catmint, rue, garlic and chives around things such as roses, it didn't work. I've heavily ammended the soils around roses that seem to be particularly appealing to them...it didn't work. Neem oil and Pyola appear to help but still not enough to go getting all gagga excited. I'm trying to talk myself into mentally simply dealing with them. They last around here for 2 months starting about mid June. They are at their worst the first and second week in July. I am still finding an occassional beetle up to today. I don't think there is a "works like a charm" organic or even man-made chemical fix for these bugs. They are little b@#$%^ds from Hades pure and simple.
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mixed results, especially in a cold climate. One person at our ext ofc said another had good luck with Milky Spore. My neighbor is going to use it in combo with GrubX. I'm thinking to lay the MS in the spring after the last frost, have to reapply every year for a few years (some say not). I was told to get the GrubX down by Jul 31, didn't make the deadline, took down my traps, yard is too small, plus not as many roses as you, hand picked, just got back in, got 2, so they are in decline here but not gone. http://www.ces.ncsu.edu/gaston/Pests/japbeet.html and at useful link, can't find the one that told how much to use in several different brands of spreaders. "Milky Spore is a bacterium, Bacillus popillae, which is lethal primarily for Japanese beetle grubs. Once applied, it can remain in the soil for many years. In warm climates, good control of the Japanese beetle can occur in one to three years; in cooler climates, three to five years. Also says 10 oz. covers 2500 sq ft. So people reporting poor results may need more patience, also problem with acidic soils, much pro and con about it for northern gardens. Worth a try. Here is a link that might be useful: Arbico Organics - Milky Spore Powder
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rhizo_1 (North AL) zone 7
17 years ago
Hmmmmmm. As a matter of fact, there is at least one beetle grub that feeds on all of that good stuff. The Green June Bug larvae is often found in compost heaps, manure piles, pastures, richly amended garden beds. Did you see a flurry of them last year? They are fruit and veggie eaters.

Many of the other pesky beetle grubs prefer lawns because they feed on tender grass roots.

There are likely other possible culprits, but that's the one that I know of for certain.

Here is a link that might be useful: {{gwi:453210}}
susanlynne48
17 years ago
Yes, there were quite a few around last year. Darn it!

Do I need to apply anything to the bed. Most of the stuff, like the milky spore, takes up to 2 years to be effective. Or are the larvae just feeding on the organic materials and not like bulbs or roots? Could they totally destroy the plants I have in that bed? I just have about 4 plants in it so far. It's kind of a "holding bed".

Susan

Milky Spore- Bacillus popillae-Dutky

Comments (4)

rhizo_1 (North AL) zone 7

susanlynne48

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