And Now, Flea Beetles

Some of the time you would say it was luck, and some of the time you would say it was weather, but this season has been really hard on the garden in the insect department. In addition to the usual trouble with cutworms and cabbage loopers, we also have a bunch of asparagus beetles ruining that crop.  

And now there are also flea beetles:


That little black bug in the center is a small beets that can hop around, and we have more than just one. you can see that there’s tons of damage on that arugula leaf it’s sitting on, and every arugula plant in our mesclun patch looks the same way. They also really like radishes, so I don’t think we’ll be getting any of those to plump up any time soon. 

We can live without arugula and radishes, but these bugs have also gotten into our broccoli and cauliflower, though the damage for the most part isn’t quite as severe:



Since radishes are their favorite food, I planted several small patches in the broccoli and cauliflower beds to serve as a trap. The idea is that those seedlings will lure the bigs away from the more important plants. I’m also trying some Neem oil to help break their reproductive cycle, but I’m not sure how well that will work.

I’m not sure if it’s the cold what weather or what, but this spring we’re really struggling with the bugs. Usually they’re not a big deal by June, but the spring has lingered and our growing season has been delayed. Here’s hoping our mini heat wave this weekend will help things get back on track. 

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