I have been battling them in my yard! They love my astilbe, lady's mantle, and some heuchera. They have NOT touched my may night salvia, sedum, stachys hummelo, hosta, fothergilla, agastache, clematis, geranium macrorrhizum, lamium, nepeta, platycodon, hakonechloa, montauk daisy, or anything else shrubby.

I had a lot of success with hand-picking this year, since I knew in advance when to expect them (in my yard, they arrive just as the astilbe are opening). You can read about it in the thread below.

Good luck!

Here is a link that might be useful: http://forums.gardenweb.com/forums/load/neweng/msg0623261828381.html?14

I have Asiatic Garden Beetle, which, for anyone who doesn't want to bother googling maladera castanea, is the common name for this pest. I find them on the screen doors and in the pool skimmer, but don't see all that much damage from them - nothing serious, anyway.

They've never really destroyed anything, just made some unsightly holes in the leaves. Unlike Japanese beetles, they don't communicate their delectable finds to others of their species, so a healthy plant that's not under stress can withstand having a moderate number of AGBs around.

If I could get them to eat lemon balm, I'd invite them into my yard.

Thanks lalala and diddinginthedirt.

Lalala yes I had posted on your post, I am the one with the Sevin.

We moved into this house a little over 2 years ago, and we inherited the AGB menace. The ground is full or their grubs,. Yesterday I dug a small hole to plant a small plant and I found 3 grown AGBs. There is a LOT of them, hence the damage.

I am attaching pics to this post,of the mums eaten down to bare stem. The mums they have completely destroyed, most of the monarda and lemon balm is gone, and now they are going for the echinacia, heliopsis, raspberries, blueberries, lady's mantle, and other plants (even the sedum).

The sevin does not seem to stop them unfortunately. Garden is too big to hand pick, it would take me all night and I would have to go to work in the morning.

Bad day today watching the plants getting dismantled and on top of it my significant other cut the transplanted rose of sharon sucked (got from a GardenWeber, thanks) thinking it was a weed, shucks.

P. S: Does anyone know how to upload multiple pics on a post here, it only lets me do one?

Another mum eaten to bare stem pic

a close up pic of the yet another eaten mum

This FAQ tells you how to insert more than one photo in a post.

How do I include a photo in my post?

Claire

Hi daffodil33, I should have remembered your name from my thread. Sounds like you have a good strategy: plant things the beetles won't eat! Those pictures are sad...I do remember having one mum completely eaten a few years back before I learned about AGBs. Eventually they will move on if your garden is unappetizing!