They are known for their voracious feeding habits, targeting a wide range of plants, including ornamentals, fruit trees, and vegetables. I speak of no other than the Japanese beetle (Popillia japonica) an invasive species in the United States, originating from Japan.
Though reports have been made of Japanese beetle sightings in Florida, there is still not a known established population. However, it’s important to note that the status of Japanese beetles in Florida can change, potentially rapidly, over time. Thus, it is important to be able to identify the species’ host plants and damaged caused. Early detection, monitoring, and swift action can help minimize the potential damage caused by invasive species like Japanese beetles that could potentially have negative impacts on agricultural crops, gardens, and ornamental plants.
Description
The adult Japanese beetle is an attractive pest that is generally metallic green, with bronze or copper-brown wing covers that do not completely cover the abdomen, revealing five patches of white hairs on each side and one pair on the last abdominal segment. These features distinguish Popillia japonica from all other similar looking beetles. In terms of shape, Japanese beetle generally have a broad oval body structure. Notably, the female beetles tend to be larger in size compared to their male counter parts.
Credit: David Cappaert, Michigan State University
Developmental stages usually take place under the soil after the female deposit her eggs. In most instances they complete their life cycle in one year emerging later in the summer months, however this varies based on locations.
Credit: Joel Floyd, USDA APHIS PPG
Host plants
Japanese beetles have known to have over 300 host plant species; however, some common host plants includemaples, soybean, ornamental apple species, plums, peaches, roses, blackberry, raspberry, limes, elms, grapes, and corn. Crepe myrtle and turfgrasses are also host plants.
Damages
Both adults and larvae cause plant damage. Adults feed on the foliage of host plants resulting in skeletonization of the leaves, while larvae feed on the root systems of turf and pasture species, affecting the ability of the plant to uptake nutrient and water from the soil.
Credit: Worrel Diedrick, Florida A&M University.
Management
If Japanese beetle populations do become established in Florida, it is generally advisable to take measures to manage the population such as physically removing them, using pheromone traps, or other integrated pest management strategies. Chemical recommendations are not currently available in Florida since this beetle is not reported as a pest problem. However, it is always advisable to contact your Local Extension office for recommendations. The United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) has also provided some useful information on the Japanese beetle in their homeowner’s handbook titled “Managing the Japanese Beetle: A Homeowners Handbook’’.
For the most current and accurate information specific to Japanese beetles in Florida management and species identification, consult your extension office. Supporting document can also be found by clicking the link below.
Syrphid larva and oleander aphids. Photo credit: Lyle Buss, University of Florida.
When we think of pests we tend to focus mainly on insects. Insects make up roughly 80% of animal life, however only about one percent of insects are considered pests. The rest help pollinate crops, kill pests, clean up dead stuff, and make honey. Unfortunately, plants suffer from many more types of pests such as weeds, disease, and us. This episode of “Gardening in the Panhandle LIVE!” was all about managing pests.
Many soft-bodied insect pests can be controlled with insecticidal soap. Many insecticidal soaps are on the market that can help control pests like aphids and whiteflies. However, dish soaps are manufactured for cleaning dishes and not labeled for pest control. More information on insecticidal soaps can be found in the publication “Managing Plant Pests with Soaps”.
Although dish soap isn’t a good option for insect control, there are some things from around the house that can be used to help manage pests. The publication “Do-It-Yourself Insect Pest Traps” offers some excellent options for monitoring and managing pests with traps.
Florida is home to a plethora of insect pests. The Ask IFAS website has many articles on insect pests common in the garden.
Companion planting is the practice of planting two or more plant species close to each other to improve growth and/or pest control of one or more of the species. The article “Companion Planting: What is it?” offers some great recommendations and examples of this technique. Marigolds are an excellent companion plant because they can help deter and suppress nematode populations.
Some people prefer to only use naturally derived products for pest control. The publication “Natural Products for Landscape and Garden Pests in Florida” extensively reviews some of these products. Bacillus thuringiensis (BT) is a bacteria found in soil that can be used for caterpillar pest control.
We love our squash, cucumbers, and watermelons in the South, however there are a number of insects that like to eat them too. More information on cucurbit insect pests and their management can be found in the publication “Insect Management for Cucurbits”.
Armyworms like to feed on just about everything. The Ask IFAS website has a nice collection of publications on all types of armyworms.
Some fungi are fun to eat while others kill our landscape plants. One common fungal disease found in the landscape is Entomosporium leaf spot. This disease is very common on Indian hawthorns. The article “Keep an Eye on Your Indian Hawthorn” describes this disease and it’s control.
Aphids are a very common insect pest. In fact, some plant species have specific aphids. More information on different aphid species and their control can be found in the publication “Aphids on Landscape Plants”.
A plant in the wrong place is considered a weed. Some plants are particularly good at finding the wrong place and can take over our lawns. The publication “Weed Management Guide for Florida Lawns” offers solutions on controlling common lawn weeds.
Cockroaches do a nice job cleaning up litter when they’re outside, but we don’t need want them in our houses whether they’re cleaning up trash or not. The publication “Cockroaches and Their Management” is a great resource for cockroach species identification and management.
As previously mentioned, there are a lot more good insects than bad insects. For more information on predatory insects and biological controls check out the publication “Natural Enemies and Biological Control”.
Nature is fascinating and most people are lifetime learners. To help find out what you’re looking at, give the iNaturalist website and app a try.
Armadillos don’t mean any harm and can be kind of cute. However, they can make a mess of our yard and they build their dens in some undesirable locations. The publication “The Nine-Banded Armadillo” provides information on armadillos and their management.
Fire ants are pests of our lawns and pastures and their sting is brutal. For more information on fire ants please refer to the publication “Managing Imported Fire Ants in Urban Areas”.
Pests can be pesky, but they are manageable if you keep up with the art and science of their control. If you need help with identification and pest management options please don’t hesitate to contact your local Extension Office.
Past episodes of Gardening in the Panhandle LIVE can be found on our YouTube playlist.
How many blissful summer days have been disrupted in Florida by biting or stinging insects? More than a few. Mosquitoes, fire ants, yellow flies, dog flies, no-see-ums, yellowjackets, and more all live in our area and are either gleefully happy to violently defend their territory or actively seeking people out as food. One more creature to add to the list, though it is technically an arachnid rather than an insect, is the chigger.
Chiggers, also known colloquially as red bugs, are the larvae of mites in the family Trombiculidae. They are difficult to see, even as adults, because of their diminutive size. They’re tiny. So tiny, in fact, that you may not be able to feel them even if they’re crawling all over you. They don’t seem to have any claustrophobia, rather enjoying the tightest spaces under clothing and spots where skin is thin and tender. This leads to bites in some very uncomfortable places. When they bite, chiggers temporarily attach themselves to their host and inject a digestive fluid into the skin. This triggers an immune response in people; our bodies don’t seem to like being partially digested and sucked up by tiny critters. Even if the body’s response means the mite doesn’t finish its meal, it still leaves a mark. Different people may have varying sensitivity to the bites, but it is never a pleasant experience. Itching sets in four to eight hours after the bites, which may be accompanied by red welts or bumps on the skin. Severe reactions may lead to fever.
Chigger. Photo Credit: University of Florida/IFAS
Chiggers do not attach themselves permanently to people, nor do they burrow under the skin. If you’re lucky enough to discover any mites still biting you, take a hot shower and lather with soap several times. Nail polish applied to the bites will not help, though strangely enough meat tenderizer may help with the itching. Antiseptic is always a good idea as well, and if you’re short on meat tenderizer, an over-the-counter anti-itch product will serve too.
To avoid running afoul of chiggers, be aware that they are most likely to be found in low, damp areas outdoors with shrubby vegetation. They may be found elsewhere, but one persistent myth is that they like to inhabit Spanish moss. In reality, they don’t have any particular attraction to it.
Thankfully, insect repellants that contain DEET repel chiggers as well as other pests. For maximum effectiveness on chiggers, apply repellants to sleeves and cuffs of pants, as well as waistlines.
Insects use pheromones to attract their mates and communicate with each other. Ants use pheromones to tell fellow ants where to find food. Aphids use pheromones to warn each other about potential predators. And all insects use pheromones to call for a mate.
So what exactly are pheromones? Pheromones are substances that are secreted by an individual and received by another individual of the same species. In humans, pheromones are most commonly found in sweat and detected by the olfactory system. Most animals have a functioning vomeronasal organ inside their noses to detect and process pheromones. However, it is debatable whether adult humans possess a functional vomeronasal organ.
Although most of us may not be able to detect insect pheromones, scientists have been able to identify and synthesize the pheromones of many economically important insects. These pheromones are impregnated on rubber and plastic dispensers and placed in different types of traps depending on the pest. The pheromone traps attract males of the target species. These traps are commonly used for monitoring, but in some cases can be utilized to disrupt mating habits which can help control some pests.
The most common pheromone trap in this part of the country is probably a boll weevil trap. Growing up, I thought they looked like little green lighthouses. These traps consist of a yellow-green cannister with an inverted funnel on top that contains the pheromone. While you may not be growing cotton in your home garden, there are some other common insect pests you may want to monitor and possibly disrupt.
Pecan nut casebearer trap with pheromone bait. Photo Credit: UGA Cooperative Extension
Pecan Nut Casebearer (PNC) – These moths are gray with a dark line of scales on their forewings. PNC moths are about 1/3 inches long. They lay their eggs on the outside of pecan husks in April/early May. Their larvae bore into the base of developing nuts and remain inside the nuts for four to five weeks to feed then pupate. A tent-type trap with pheromone can be hung in a pecan tree in April or May to help monitor for this insect. Depending on how many trees you have, multiple traps can be installed to possibly disrupt the mating cycle of this pest.
A yellow sticky trap with Asian citrus psyllids circled. Photo Credit: Matt Lollar, University of Florida/IFAS Extension – Santa Rosa County
Asian Citrus Psyllid (ACP) – These tiny insects are about the size of the tip of a pencil (about 1/8 inches long). They vector the Huanglongbing (HLB) disease also known as citrus greening. This disease blocks the nutrient uptake tissue of citrus trees and eventually kills infected trees. Traps consist of a yellow sticky card with a pheromone bait sometimes impregnated on the twist tie hanger. The citrus industry has been heavily impacted by citrus greening, so monitoring for this pest is very important.
An abundance of clearwing moths on a pheromone trap that has been pulled apart. Photo Credit: Matt Lollar, University of Florida/IFAS Extension – Santa Rosa County
Clearwing Moth – There are numerous species of clearwing moths that bore into the trunks of fruit and ornamental trees and shrubs. One of the most common is the peachtree borer. These insects don’t look like a typical moth. Instead, they resemble wasps. Tent-type pheromone traps can be used to monitor for clearwing moths and potentially disrupt their mating habits. Another common clearwing moth is the ash borer (lilac borer). As their name would suggest, these moths bore into the wood of ash trees, but they also like various Ligustrum species and olive trees.
These are just a few of the species of insects that can be monitored by pheromone traps. To help with the timing of trap dispersal and placement, you should get a grasp of concept of “Degree Days”. Degree day accumulation is used to predict important life events for particular insects such as the average egg laying date, egg hatch date, and larval development. More information on calculating degree days can be found in the article “Predicting Insect Development Using Degree Days” from the University of Kentucky. Fortunately for us, we can skip some of the math by utilizing the AgroClimate Growing Degree Days Calculator. Simply select the weather station closest to you on the provided map and a graph will appear.
Welcome to the world of symbiotic serenity, where ants and aphids work in harmony to create a thriving ecosystem. Ants farming aphids is a fascinating phenomenon in nature, where ants tend to aphids, protecting and nurturing them like precious livestock, while aphids provide the ants with a sweet and nutritious honeydew secretion.
The relationship between ants and aphids is complex and benefits both parties. Aphids, which are soft-bodied sucking insects that feed on plant sap, secreting honeydew – a sugary secretion that aphids produce as waste from their sap consumption. This sweet substance is highly attractive to ants, who actively tend to aphids in order to obtain honeydew as a food source.
One of the most fascinating aspects of ant farming aphids is the behavior exhibited by ants when caring and protecting aphids. Ants are known to carefully tend to aphids, often referred to as “herding”. In doing so, they stroke the aphids with their antennae, stimulating them to release honeydew. Ants then collect and consume this honeydew, which serves as a valuable source of nutrition for them.
Aphids also benefit from this mutualistic partnership by relying on ants for protection from predators such as ladybugs, lacewings, and other aphid predators. In the presence of ants, aphids are less likely to be attacked by natural enemies, which allows them to feed and reproduce more freely. In addition, ants can transport aphids to new feeding sites, which helps aphids access fresh sources of sap.
However, this mutualistic relationship between ants and aphids can also pose problems for gardeners and homeowners. When ants protect aphids from natural enemies, this can result in increased aphid populations and plant damage. Therefore, it is important to control ant farming of aphids in order to manage aphid infestations effectively.
There are several methods gardeners/homeowners can use to manage ant farming of aphids:
Early detection is key. Regularly check for aphids at least twice a week while plants are growing rapidly.
Utilize natural enemies of aphids such as parasitic wasps, lady beetles, lacewing larvae, soldier beetles, and syrphid fly larvae. These insects can help keep aphid populations at an acceptable threshold.
Ant management is crucial. A band of sticky material can be wrapped around the trunk to prevent ants from reaching the aphids.
Prune and dispose of infested branches.
Insecticidal soaps and oils can be used to suffocate aphids. However, these products only kill aphids on contact. Other synthetic insecticides like malathion, permethrin, etc. are alternatives that can control aphids, but they may harm natural enemies and pollinators such as bees.
*Important to note, follow all manufacturers instruction when using chemical products.
In conclusion, ants farming aphids is a captivating example of mutualistic interactions in nature and serve as a compelling reminder of the wonders and intricacies of the natural world.
While the azalea blooms are beautiful, it’s hard to remember what the leaves looked like last summer. But, if you look carefully, you may see some off-colored, bleached out leaves. Those are from a piercing-sucking insect. Its azalea lace bug, Stephanitis pyrioides. They overwinter as eggs on the underside of infested leaves or in the leaf litter or mulch under the shrub. Eggs hatch in late March and early April. The insect then passes through five nymphal instars before becoming an adult. It takes approximately one month for the insect to complete development from egg to adult and there are at least four generations per year. Valuable plants that are susceptible to lace bug damage should be inspected in the early spring for the presence of overwintering lace bug adults, eggs and newly hatched nymphs. Inspect these plants every two weeks during the growing season for developing lace bug infestations.
Damage caused by azalea lace bug, Stephanitis pyrioides (Scott), feeding. Photograph by James. L. Castner, University of Florida.
Both adults and nymphs have piercing-sucking mouthparts and remove sap as they feed from the underside of the leaf. Lace bug damage to the foliage detracts greatly from the plants’ beauty, reduces the plants’ ability to produce food, decreases plant vigor and causes the plant to be more susceptible to damage by other insects, diseases or unfavorable weather conditions. The azalea can become almost silver or bleached in appearance from the feeding lace bug damage.
Adult azalea lace bug, Stephanitis pyrioides (Scott). Photograph by Jamba Gyeltshen, University of Florida.
However, lace bugs often go undetected until the infested plants show severe damage sometime into the summer. By then several generations of lace bugs have been weakening the plant. Inspecting early in the spring and simply washing them off the underside of the leaves can help to avoid damage later and the need for pesticides.
Adult lace bugs are flattened and rectangular in shape measuring 1/8 to 1/4 inch long. The area behind the head and the wing covers form a broadened, lace-like body covering. The wings are light amber to transparent in color. Lace bugs leave behind spiny black spots of frass (excrement).
Lace bug nymphs are flat and oval in shape with spines projecting from their bodies in all directions. A lace bug nymph goes through five growth stages (instars) before becoming an adult. At each stage the nymph sheds its skin (molts) and these old skins often remain attached to the lower surface of infested leaves.
Azalea leaf with azalea lace bugs, Stephanitis pyrioides (Scott), and excrement spots. Photograph by James. L. Castner, University of Florida.
Azalea lace bug eggs are football-shaped and are transparent to cream colored. Lace bug eggs are found on the lower leaf surface, usually alongside or inserted into a leaf vein. Adult females secrete a varnish-like substance over the eggs that hardens into a scab-like protective covering. Other plant species, such as lantana and sycamore, may have similar symptoms. But, realize that lace bugs are host specific. They feed on their favorite plant and won’t go to another plant species. However, the life cycle is similar. Be sure to clean up all the damaged leaves. That’s where the eggs will remain for the winter. Start next spring egg-free.
