Japanese Beetles are 3/8 inch long metallic green
beetles with copper-brown
wing covers.
Adults emerge from the ground and begin
feeding on plants in
June. Individual beetles live about 30 to 45 days, highest activity is concentrated over a four to six week period, beginning in July. They usually feed in
groups, starting at the top of a plant and working downward, and prefer plants exposed to direct
sunlight. A single beetle does not eat much; it is
group feeding by many beetles that causes the severest
damage. Adults feed on the upper surface of
foliage, chewing out
tissue between the
veins. This gives the leaf a characteristic
skeletonized appearance.
These little bastards have totally destroyed one of my largest rose bushes this June. I bought a Spectracide beetle trap that uses sex attractants to trap the beetles in a large, throwaway bag. This trap usually catches four to five hundred beetles a day, but it doesn't seem to be enough. There are still enough beetles left to eat my rose bush, swarm me when I'm leaving through my front door, and sneak inside and visit me in the shower. Yuck.