UMass Extension Landscape Message June 13, 2014

"Viburnum Leaf Beetle: The larvae have mostly finished feeding statewide and are now in the soil in the pupa stage. Adult beetles will begin to appear by early to mid-July and will continue to emerge and feed on the same host plants that the larvae fed on. Plants that were defoliated by the larvae should re-foliate but the newly emerging adults, when they appear, are capable of defoliating the plant for a second time within the same growing season. Continue to monitor damaged plants, water during times of drought, and treat for the adult beetles with a pyrethroid insecticide, when necessary."

Claire