As a youth I remember seeing Sevin recommended as an insecticide for flowers and vegetables. I have been growing 2 chestnut trees to help rebuild the mighty chestnut forests. Recently I spotted some Japanese beetles carousing and munching on the big leaves. A bit of research shows that Sevin is a recommended cure for them. I guess they really nailed it with Sevin - apparently it works and has caused no harm to the environment.
Hear, hear.
We’ve used it successfully for years. My Granny used it. My Daddy used it.
Yep, one of the good old products of the garden store.
Sevin (carbaryl) is deemed relatively safe for vertebrates based on short-term effects, though EPA lists it as a “likely” carcinogen. It can harm aquatic ecosystems, either directly on organisms or by encouraging algal blooms.
I have so far avoided using Sevin to kill Japanese beetles, mainly because I grow crops in close proximity to ornamental plants that are most affected by JBs. I instead use pyrethrin and its derivatives which are however toxic to bees, so it’s best to spray late in the day.
Sevin is extremely toxic to bees (honey, bumble, etc) so applying it to plants with blooming flowers isn’t recommended as it will kill any bees visiting the plant.
Have you tried hormone traps?
I’m going to get some traps also. Right now I needed a quick fix and the pesky golden beetles seemed to have vanished. It’s only 2 trees about 7 feet tall. Decades ago when I had grapes they were overrun with Japanese beetles. I used to go around with a open bucket of soapy water and shake the leaves and they would fall in. Then you put everything in a blender and made beetle smoothies. You sprayed that on the vines. This was probably something from Mother Earth News. I can’t remember if it worked but it smelled gawd awful.
I found that a mixture of Sevin and Durham’s “Rock Hard Water putty” is a great solution to carpenter bees. Mix the two together with some water and fill the holes. I did about 60/40 Durham’s to Sevin.
But always keep a bee bat handy. It is very satisfying to wallop a carpenter bee across the yard.
I remember several decades ago, my parents’ house in Connecticut had massive numbers of Japanese beetles and we hung the pheromone traps in the yard. They were very effective. I like that they are targeted only at them.
One year I planted canna lilies and the Japanese beetles absolutely devastated them. I put out pheromone traps and they filled with Japanese beetles. And a single, much larger, June Bug. I suppose the invasive Japanese beetles displaced the native species.
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I remember several decades ago, my parents’ house in Connecticut had massive numbers of Japanese beetles and we hung the pheromone traps in the yard. They were very effective. I like that they are targeted only at them.
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I hung one up today i between the two trees. As I watched a Japanese Beetle made a high speed run across the yard and went right into the trap!
Using pheromone traps for Japanese beetles has not been found to decrease JB damage - and may actually increase it.
Killing JBs, either by hand or via spraying, doesn’t seem to discourage additional plant predation. They apparently figure, “hey, lots of my kind have been here, so this must be a great spot to dine!”.
I thought the idea was to place the pheromone traps away from your plants.
Yes, but especially on a small property it may not be possible to create enough separation.
Another idea is to have “trap” plants which are especially attractive to JBs, so (theoretically at least) they will ignore your desirable specimens. I doubt that strategy is highly effective.
In another month or so their onslaught here should be over for the year.
So gift your neighbor with the pheromone traps?