Saturday, June 21, 2008

sigh

Japanese Beetles

the war is starting
in the summer
beetle battlefield
of my yard
they lost three today
I will stand my ground, I will not surrender
I will be diligent in trying to protect my roses
but I will lose

if this year is anything like last year
soon each morning will great me with a hundred beetles covering the plants,
I will do my best to capture them all
but by the time I finish my first circle of the beds, another round of beetles will have descended
over and over, all day long, day after day.
It doesn't matter how many I kill, for reasons I can not fathom, God has made an unending supply.

So here I am. DAY 1.
I wish I had a good plan

The beetle traps do trap beetles, but they also call beetles to my yard, It seems an equal amount get trapped, as fly past the trap onto my flowers. (by my rough estimate, a trillion)

Milky spore is of great interest to me, but it would only work if everybody in the neighborhood used it, otherwise, beetles born in other's yards, would just fly over to my rosiest yard of all.

Seven, or however it is spelled, insecticide of some sort. Oh yeah, I would totally do that, except...I worry about the lady bugs, and the bees, et. cetera. Still I can't help thinking about it.

Just let them go. Surrender the plants, till about mid-August, when they naturally slow down for the year, and expect to have a lovely bloom by the end of August to enjoy. I can see the value in this, much more peaceful, acceptance, I however seem unable to feel anything less than rage, when I see the dainty blossom petals, transformed into a hard backed beetle orgy. I am amazed by the flowers though, blossom after blossom, bud after bud, are consumed, and still she makes more and more, forever trying, reaching, for that full bloom, and she will have it, eventually. She will be consumed in parts for a time, but in the end, she still stands, and will have time and space, to bloom freely and beautifully.

The last option, the one that I do, is the old bucket of soapy water thing, you knock the beetles off into a bucket or jar (though I do often forget to add the soap). This is why it is a battle, because every day it must be done, and every day I count their losses, and mine. And I hate having to kill things, or deciding to kill something, making each day, also, a moral dilemma.

I wonder if it would work, and if it is legal, and if there are any negative consequences to establishing winsome flies in my yard? I wish these beetles would just go back to Japan, where they are naturally controlled by those flies.

5 comments:

Alyson | New England Living said...

I hate fighting back things that just keep coming. I can get rather overwhelmed. Good luck in your pursuit!

Bee said...

I've had to knock back the greenfly a couple of times already, and black spot is an ongoing problem . . . but I've never experienced a rose destroyer like this one!

You show admirable patience; and now I understand why you want to vanquish them in your fictional world!

strugglingwriter said...

Good luck with the beetle battle.

We are currently plagued by Cicadas.

Mediterranean Views said...

Hi Taffiny, I remeber Japanese beatles from back in Va. They were horrible, keep up your battle. Your rose are so varied and must require much love and care from you, so do not surrender them to those nasty creatures. Here's a natural remedy an older spanish friend of mine used in his flower garden, (although we don't have japanese beatles, we have morrocan butterflies or moths that setroy our geraniums and the like). He would put all of the grlaic skins and cut off pints into a jar and ad water. Let it "ripen" for a few days and then put into a sprayer and spray your flowers.
OK so roses aren't supposed to smell like garlic, but they'd look pretty if it works to keep beattles away.
I've done your MEME, so stop by to have a look. It was interestin to look back that way. Thanks,
Amy

Taffiny said...

Alyson,

Thank you.
I feel bad battling them, but I am. Thanks for coming by.
:)


Bee,

:).
I know it is wrong of me to think of them as evil, as they are just doing what is natural to them, yet, I have great trouble thinking of them as anything but...because they are destroyers. (at least of flower gardens)

Paul,

Hmm, I haven't seen any cicadas yet, and we really are not that far from each other (compared to how far away I am from others). The beetles are really only truly a bother, plague like, if one has roses. What, I wonder, do cicadas do? Besides make that noise. I don't think I have any energy leftover, to worry about what they might do, but still for a moment I am wondering.

Amy,

I'll give garlic a try! It will keep vampires away too! Unless of course they are Italian vampires.

I will stop by soon to read your meme, I don't know if I can today, I only stopped in today, to say I was too busy with domestic bliss, aka housework to go visiting.