Friday, April 23, 2010

Colorado Potato Beetles

This is our potato patch that is in the front of our garden. What you can't see is that there are four rows. On those four rows are bugs. Colorado Potato Beetles. From this point on, we will call them CPB's or little bastards. I was lazily walking the rows, admiring the sudden burst of growth when I saw a striped little beetle. A flash from my childhood came to mind and screamed at me to kill this bugger... little bastard... CPB. Whatever. I did. I got a rock and I squished his guts out. I found a larvae and squished it, too. Ok, honestly, when I saw the larvae I had no clue what I was looking at. I had a feeling in my gut that told me it was bad.

Colorado Potato Beetle Larvae--Kill it with fire!...maybe not
fire, but a nice squishing should do the trick.

We are trying very hard to keep chemicals out of the garden. This means multiple walks every day to check for the little bastards. CPB's, I mean. Surely, these guys have natural predators. Hmm. Homework. I soo thought I was over doing homework when I grabbed my diploma from my principal. Please. I have never done more homework in my life than I have since we bought this place. I hit Google. Google sent me to many, many sites by county extension offices all over the country. They all said the same thing. They are resistant to pesticides and overwinter in the ground. Grr. This leaves two options: 1. Hand pick them. 2. Introduce predators. Hmm. Ok, what are the predators? Turns out that ladybugs luuurve them some CPB larvae. It seems in my eagerness to rid my potato plants of pests, I deprived a hungry ladybug of a meal. Dear ladybug, I am truly sorry. Help yourself. Bring friends. Love, me.

Love the ladybugs, leave the stinkbugs and let them eat the striped bugs. While stinkbugs aren't good for tomatoes, they are good for potatoes. I guess it's a good thing they are on opposite ends of the garden.

Move some earth, drop a seed, pray for rain, and reap the bounty. Happy gardening.
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3 comments:

  1. AerronApril 26, 2010 at 8:07 AM

    Whenever we find ladybugs anywhere else in the yard, she picks them up and puts them in the potatoes. We should just buy some.

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  2. Clara WielandApril 28, 2010 at 3:00 AM

    Come to my office in the spring! They actually crowd in the corner. I don't know where they come from, or how to humanely get them out, being so many, so I leave them alone, but eventually they die. It's looks like a lady bug killing field. :(

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  3. BenjiApril 28, 2010 at 9:40 AM

    They hibernate in buildings (typically of light color) in the winter to awaken in the spring. They usually gather in large numbers in the winter, so if you see one, it is likely going to join many, many friends. You can use a shop vac with a towel in the bottom or a hand vac to get them out of the office. Then, dump them outside or take them home to your garden. I can't believe how stupid I am over all of this.

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