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Lily Leaf Beetle

A bug to strike fear in the toughest of lily growers!

We are fortunate enough to grow in an area where the lily beetle has yet to make an appearance, and we are extremely thankful. We have much reason to be so thankful as this dreaded little beast can do an incredible amount of damage in a very short time!

For help in identification and excellent photos of this pest please visit this link http://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/Lilioceris_lilii

There had been no reports of this beetle in the province of Alberta until spring of 2003, when a member of the Alberta Regional Lily Society alerted the Society to the fact that he had ordered lily bulbs (from a large, well-known, reputable mail-order nursery out of Ontario) that arrived complete with beetles. Since the company is so well known and surely has a large customer base here in Alberta, we can only assume it is just a matter of time before it becomes a problem here, which is a terrible shame. I cannot help but feel the company in question should have been more careful in their inspection of bulbs they purchase for resale before distributing them to their customers - it is of utmost importance that bulbs be clean and free of soil and pests to prevent problems that can have such detrimental effects on gardens for many years to come!

I was contacted by a customer in Ontario in 2003, who needed help to battle this pest before they destroyed his beautiful lily gardens, but I was unable to help as I'd never had to deal with the problem myself. He had been told by a local garden centre to use CYGON (a very powerful and potent chemical pesticide). I was familiar with CYGON and agreed it's potency and systemic effects were favorable for use on this pest. I suggested he contact the company which makes the product to see if it could be used on lilies without damaging the bulbs or growth. Their reply was positive, and he was nice enough to forward the reply to me. Here is what they suggested for treatment:

4 teaspoons CYGON per gallon of water for use as spray on the lily stems

OR

4 tablespoons CYGON per gallon water for use as a soil drench

This is a systemic pesticide, which means the plant absorbs the chemical and then the pest digests it along with the plant material as they munch on it and then die. Systemic controls have long lasting effects and require less frequent treatments, they also take a few days to be completely absorbed by the plant. Control should begin in 4-10 days and the treatment should be applied every 4 weeks. Be sure to spray when no wind is present, and only in early morning or late evening, never spray in direct sunlight. I cannot caution you enough on using safety precautions when using this product - it is extremely potent and overuse, whether by mixing too strong or application too frequently can cause severe damage to the plants. Protect your skin and wear a mask at all costs! This product is commonly used for treatment of Birch Leaf Miner on Birch trees here in Alberta, and is considered the most effective control.

I should add that immediately upon hearing that it could be used on lilies, I mixed a solution of it at the required rate and applied it to a large clump of lilies as a soil drench in order to test for damage to the plants (I was a bit skeptical that there would be no leaf scorch or burn as in every instance where I have used it there was visible plant damage, regardless of type of plant or tree). It was applied on an early summer morning and the lilies did not suffer a hint of visible damage.

HOW TO PROTECT YOUR GARDEN

The best thing to do to protect your garden from being invaded by this pest is to ensure you buy bulbs from reputable sources, and that they are COMPLETELY free of all soil. That means they must be washed! If you are in doubt as to whether they have been, wash them yourself. Soak them for 20 minutes in hot water with 2% bleach added, then rinse them off with water only before planting.

Buy bulbs from reputable sources who clean their bulbs before shipping.

Do NOT plant bulbs from sources when they arrive with soil still attached to roots or the base of the bulb.

Wash them yourself if in doubt.

Avoid buying potted lilies from grocery or department stores, even some floral shops. Many of these sources import potted plants from outside the province and country. Don't take their word for it if they tell you they are locally grown!

Consider where you are buying from before ordering - does the area your ordering from already have the beetle established or known to be present? Does the supplier wash and clean their bulbs before packaging? At this time (December 2008) Atlantic Canada, Ontario, Southern Manitoba & Southern Alberta are known to have the beetle, as do most locations across the USA.

AS OF JUNE 1, 2009 - If you live in Alberta and suspect you have the Lily Leaf Beetle in your garden please call Dr. Ken Fry at 403-556-8261 (Olds College, AB). The Alberta Regional Lily Society has contracted Dr. Fry to conduct research and track the beetles presence in Alberta. What this means for the average gardener is free identification and possible control methods advised by a top-knotch Entomologist! Together, we can all help control the presence of this pest in our province.

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