My beautiful lily which grows in a pot just outside the patio door was sending out the wrong signals, I kept staring , not quite sure what I was seeing. The leaves were either half gone or semi transparent and there were black lumps as I thought on the undersides of quite a few of them, then I spied this lone red beetle on a leaf.
I have never seen a Lily beetle before but immediately knew that is what it was. Because I had become aware of the damage almost immediately on looking at the Lily I can only suppose it was not there this morning and had either landed or hatched out and immediately set to work!
I took a photo of the Lily just in case it does not survive another day!
I searched the shed and came across this bottle and on reading the different bugs it dispatches there is the lily beetle, not a red one but a beetle just the same. I drenched each leaf on top and the underside and then got tissue, cleaned each leaf and then sprayed again to be sure to be sure!
Fingers crossed that is the end of the Lily beetle if such it was, maybe someone with a little more knowledge would comment?!
Comments
LIFE CYCLE: The adult beetle overwinters in the soil or plant debris and emerges in early spring looking for food and a mate. After mating, the female lays eggs in lines on the underside of Lilium or Fritillaria leaves. Some damage is done by the adults at this time, but the major damage comes when the eggs hatch into larvae in 7-10 days. The larvae voraciously consume all leaves within reach and may then start on flower buds. This continues for 2 to 3 weeks, when the larvae then drop into the soil and begin to pupate. In another 2 to 3 weeks the adult beetles emerge to start eating again. This process occurs from early spring to mid-summer. Reportedly the beetles won't mate and lay eggs until the next spring.
Hope this helps.
So far so good but I will defintely be keeping a close eye on the Lily now!