Yesterday, one of my library co-workers came to me and in appropriately hushed, but slightly panicked tones, told me about some beetle-esque critters that appeared to be munching on her tiger lilies, which are just emerging from their winter slumber. “They look like ladybugs,” she said, “until you get up close. They don’t have any spots on them.” Uh oh, I thought.
A Red Lilly Beetle (Lilioceris lilii) on a lily leaf. (Photo credit: Wikipedia)
This is the dreaded red (scarlet) lily beetle (Lilioceris lilii – isn’t that the best scientific name ever??? Well, next to Bison bison, that is). A little longer and a little boxier than the cute, rounded lady beetle, red lily beetles are not spotted like the beneficial bugs. We never used to have them in Alberta, but apparently they hitched a ride on some lily bulbs brought in from other regions and now we’re beset by the things. Grrrrrr. Unfortunately, according to Sara Williams and Hugh Skinner’s excellent resource, Gardening, Naturally: A Chemical-Free Handbook for the Prairies (essential reading for Prairie gardeners), these nasty eating machines have no natural predators in North America, so they’re pretty much free to run rampant over our gardens, taking out our lilies and Fritillaria at will. (Don’t fret about your daylilies…Hemerocallis are safe from the marauding red horde. Not from snowshoe hares, mind you, but that’s a story for another day…). Apparently certain parasitic wasps are used as controls in Europe and we may eventually see some of them here in Canada, which offers hope.
So, what can we do to prevent an infestation? First off, if you get any lily bulbs, inspect both the bulbs and the soil they are potted up in for signs of red lily beetle - either the bright red adults, larvae or eggs. The larvae is yellow-orange in colour and is usually covered in goopy black frass (bug poop. Hope you’re not eating anything right now), while the orange eggs are small and round. Hand-pick anything you see that might be a red lily beetle and destroy it. Williams and Skinner recommend that you don’t buy lilies that are potted in soil to begin with, but they say that if you take the bulbs out and soak them in bleach (the exact amounts and procedure are in the book), you can probably get rid of the beetles.
Larvae of a scarlet (red) lily beetle (Photo credit: Wikipedia)
Throughout the spring and summer, make sure you stay on top of things! Watch your lilies for signs of the adults or larvae and hand pick and kill any culprits. The City of Calgary also suggests using diatomaceous earth as a means of successfully desiccating the critters. Bear in mind that red lily beetles are excellent fliers – after they’re done eating your neighbour’s lilies, they may latch onto yours (even mature plantings that were safe when you put them in years ago). Be vigilant…and good luck!!!!
Have you had any trouble with red lily beetles in your garden? What did you do to combat them?
Related posts: Tender spring, weather tantrums, and the scarlet scourge. (The Gardening Canuck)
Little Sis
/ May 16, 2012It’s a shame they’re so rotten, because they sure are pretty to look at.
Sheryl
/ May 16, 2012So true!
Marilyn
/ May 16, 2012We have found a couple dozen of them already. The lilies were barely pushing out of the ground. We go out every day to pick off any adults and search for eggs. We thought by cutting down the infested plants last fall and destroying them we had controlled the population however they must have hibernated in the soil as they are out to ravage my beautiful lily bounty once again. I will persist and destroy to the best of my abilities.
Marilyn
Sheryl
/ May 16, 2012Oh no, you have them, too! I so hate to hear that! Apparently they do overwinter in the soil and in leaf litter, and I guess because we had such a mild winter, there will probably be more of them than usual this year. My co-worker intends to take the drastic measure of digging up her plants (she only has a few) to inspect the bulbs; she was going to pour boiling water down the planting holes and then replant the lilies. I wonder if that will work. I really hope you can fight them off and your lilies will be safe!!
Karen
/ May 17, 2012I check for them as well in my garden in Maine. Last year we were lucky, hopefully we will be again.
Laurie
/ May 17, 2012Glad to have the info. I’ll have to inspect our lilies.
Anonymous
/ May 30, 2012we are also infested with them here in little Rhode Island i have been spraying with rose spray horrible liitle things
Sheryl
/ May 30, 2012I do hope you’ll be able to get rid of them!
Libby Keane
/ June 19, 2012My mother in law has lost her lilies the past two years to these things. I didn’t know what they were at first. And I most definitely didn’t know they hibernated in the soil. I’ll have to look up a remedy for these little buggers. Great pics. Maybe I can identify them for her before they emerge this year. Thanks for a great post, and for stopping by my blog.
Sheryl
/ June 20, 2012Likewise; thank you so much for checking out Flowery Prose!
I do hope your mother-in-law’s lily plants are safe this year – these beetles are causing problems everywhere!
colleen willissch
/ June 25, 2012This creature destroyed my lilies.
Sheryl
/ June 26, 2012I’m so sorry to hear that you’ve had red lily beetles in your garden, it’s heartbreaking to lose your plants.
skadhu
/ June 29, 2012Re: (Lilioceris lilii – isn’t that the best scientific name ever???)
It’s a good one! but my vote for ultimate scientific name is Troglodytes troglodytes (Eurasian wren). What a name for such a tiny bird with such a gorgeous song!
Sheryl
/ June 29, 2012Oh my, I definitely have to agree with you on that one! I found some video of the little birds at http://www.guardian.co.uk/science/grrlscientist/2012/may/04/8 and I could not believe how enthusiastically they sing! Thanks so much for stopping by my blog!
lori
/ July 20, 2012these beetles are miserable! when i first moved into my house 6 years ago, there was no sign of them. in 2009 they nearly wiped out my entire tiger lily patch. i read that Captain Jacks Dead Bug Brew (organic) kills them, so i armed myself with this in large supply the following year. because they overwinter in the soil, i didn’t get them all. starting this spring, i pre-emptively sprayed every area that harbored them. after every rain, i’d go out and spray the areas again. my lilies are just blooming now, and i have only a few of the dreaded beetles. the areas that i neglected to spray, have been destroyed (they ate all the leaves). i am going to start using diatomaceous earth for the rest of the summer in hopes that it will once and for all get rid of the varmints.
Sheryl
/ July 24, 2012Oh, what a horrible thing! I really hope the diatomaceous earth works for you, you (and your lilies) deserve a break from these fiends.
Desnie
/ August 23, 2012My friend next door who’s in her 80 tis bless saw my lovely display of Lilly’s last year and bought some in a pot and iv got my very first infestation of these pesky Beatles but hopefully il get rid by next year
Sheryl
/ August 24, 2012Oh, I do hope you won’t have problems with them again! Thanks so much for stopping by my blog! Please let me know how things turn out with your lilies next year.
Susan Laughton
/ September 20, 2012We have just found heaps of these red beetles on our lilies. I wondered why my lilies were poor this season. i thought they were old and needed replacing but alas it was the dreaded red lily beetle. I’m going to take my lilies out and repot cleaning each one with care. I choose to grow them in pots because of my small garden. We live near Liverpool in UK so every one is suffering these pests all over. Well hope they have gone when we come over to Canada for a visit next year
Sheryl
/ September 20, 2012Oh, it really does seem like these beetles can be found all over the world – that’s horrible! They are so destructive! I hope you’re successfully able to battle them – do keep me posted (if you think of it) on how things go. Thanks so much for stopping by my blog, I appreciate it!
Adrian D. Thysse
/ May 9, 2013I haven’t seen any in Edmonton yet. Certainly I will photograph first before squashing them if I come across these little destroyers!.
Sheryl @ Flowery Prose
/ May 11, 2013They are really very handsome, aren’t they? Too bad they are so destructive.
Christina
/ May 18, 2013These are horrible pests; the slightly good news is that they prefer certain lillies over others. In my garden they LOVE Madona Lillies but will also attack others. I’ve not heard of the paracitic wasp, I’ll have to look into that. My method of control is my husbamd! He goes around the garden picking off the beetles and squishing them – I use gloves but it is really important to remove what looks like the poo, the lavae in inside it, munching away. Christina