Cucumber
beetles come attired in either stripes or spots and
both are native to North America. Both dress variations
have been reported on daylilies. There are eastern
and western versions of both the Spotted Cucumber Beetle, Diabrotica spp.
and the Striped Cucumber Beetle, Acalymma spp.;
the eastern Spotted Cucumber Beetle is also known as
the Southern Corn Rootworm. The adult beetles are roughly
a quarter inch in length, the spotted version having
11 black spots (or twelve if you count one large merged
one as two); three black stripes adorning the striped
cucumber beetle. The wormlike larvae of both beetles
feed on several different plants below soil level (but
only cucumber and squash family plants in the case
of the striped cucumber beetle). The adult beetles
chew on foliage and blooms of a range of ornamental
plants and vegetables. There is one generation per
year in the north, up to three or four in the south.
Most suggested non-toxic controls are not appropriate
for ornamental plantings, e.g. floating row covers,
deep straw mulches, interplanting with radishes etc. |
