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  • From: pam <pam AT twinoaks.org>
  • To: Market-farming AT lists.ibiblio.org
  • Subject: [Market-farming] Asparagus Beetles
  • Date: Sun, 13 May 2007 13:08:06 -0400

We've been dealing with asparagus beetles every year. Our strategy is to handpick them daily when harvesting. They do drop to the ground and hide quickly if they sense you approaching. It's quite a competitive sport here, catching them! We have a chart of daily "catch" and people proudly proclaim their score! We pick the whole patch each day, harvesting all spears 7" or more, and any opening ferns, even if tiny. This removes the eggs from the patch (they're like black hyphens sticking out on end from the spears). It definitely reduces numbers considerably.
Another approach is to attract ladybugs to eat the eggs. We have scattered some sunflower seed in the patch. I've also heard that some buckwheat in the patch will help. We're going to try that as soon as we've got the current round of weeding finished (ha ha!).
There is a parasitic wasp something-something-Crawfordii, but it's not yet available commercially as far as I know.
Good luck,
Pam Dawling, Twin Oaks, central Virginia, zone 7




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