One of the things this blog can do is alert gardeners to the presence of new problems. This is one such instance.
WSU produces Pest Alerts, and recently the Red lily leaf beetle has been found in the Seattle area. The state is monitoring the spread of this nonnative pest, so those of you living in Washington please read this and pass it on to your gardening friends. New Englanders have been dealing with this pest for a while, but any of you outside this region may want to keep your eyes peeled.
Please comment here if you see this insect!
Bleah, the icky little lily leaf beetle! I put some very nice lilies in my MA garden about 8 years ago, and pulled them all out and threw them in the trash two years after they went in, because these little red guys munched their way through them. I adore lilies, but every time I’d see one of these beetles my blood pressure would shoot up and I’d check every leaf and stem for more beetles and larvae. The beetles are pretty and destructive; the larvae, which cover themselves in their own excrement, are even more destructive and really not pretty.
which lily species are we checking?
Hi Linda
Hi Becky –
They apparently eat a number of true lily species as well as fritillarias. Be sure to read the pdf file for a more complete listing of susceptible and resistant species.
To see video of all stages of the life cycle of this nasty insect pest, check out the following episode of my television program, “Garden Journeys.” (http://centralny.ynn.com/content/586052/garden-journeys–lily-leaf-beetle/)
Linda, you mention a pdf file. Where can I access it?
Cara, just click on the hot link embedded in the text. It will pop up in a new window.
Linda,
I just want to mention that the beetle present in the picture is not the lily leaf beetle (Lilioceris lilii), but Lilioceris merdigera (species isn’t present in America). L. lilii does not have red colored legs like the beetle in the picture, but L. merdigera does.
Only the elytra (opaque wings that cover the abdomen) and the pronotum (the plate that covers the thorax) are scarlet red. The rest on the beetle is black (head, legs, thorax and abdomen. If this picture have been taken here in America, we now have a second invader!
I am currently doing my master on this beetles, so if you ever want further information on the subject, I would be pleased to help you.
E-mail : alessandro.dieni-lafrance@umontreal.com
Alessandro, you are absolutely right. I have replaced the photo with an accurate, albeit racier, one. Thanks for catching this!
I found one today in Issaquah, WA
Just returned from vacation and found 10 more of these on my decimated tiger lilies. Issaquah, WA
This beetle was on my Japanese lantern flowers when they were in bloom. Ann Arbor MI