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  • From: "William H Shoemaker" <wshoemak AT illinois.edu>
  • To: "'Market Farming'" <market-farming AT lists.ibiblio.org>
  • Subject: Re: [Market-farming] blister bugs?
  • Date: Wed, 25 May 2011 07:01:36 -0500

Wikipedia has a brief but good explanation of blister beetles;
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Blister_beetle . Colorado potato beetle is very
round with thin yellow and black stripes. The adults don't really cause too
much damage. But they produce lots of larvae which really eat up the foliage
of potatoes. They can also be a problem on peppers and tomatoes. Knocking
off the adults as soon as you find them in your crops can make a big
difference in the threat they create. Old timers used to take a bucket of
kerosene into the potato patch and just pick them off, drop them in the
kerosene. There are probably creative, sustainable alternatives.

Bill
William H. Shoemaker
Sr. Research Specialist, Food Crops
University of Illinois - Crop Sciences
St Charles Horticulture Research Center
535 Randall Road, St Charles, IL, 60174
630-584-7254, FAX-584-4610
wshoemak AT illinois.edu
-----Original Message-----
From: market-farming-bounces AT lists.ibiblio.org
[mailto:market-farming-bounces AT lists.ibiblio.org] On Behalf Of Wiediger,
Alison
Sent: Tuesday, May 24, 2011 4:29 PM
To: Market Farming
Subject: Re: [Market-farming] blister bugs?

You're right that blister beetles and Colorado Potato Beetles are different
insects. However, blister beetles come in two colorations. they can be
black/gray as you described, and they can also be brown striped. The body
shape is the same. Here in SC Kentucky, we are so lucky as to have both.
And, if you crush one on your skin, it does raise a blister. Interestingly,
before CPB's showed up here, blister beetles were called potato beetles, And
you sometimes hear really old-timers still call them that. Another
interesting tidbit, when I interviewed a potato grower from Colorado several
years back about growing "organically", and asked how he controlled Colorado
Potato Beetle, he informed me it was not a pest there. So, why is it called
Colorado Potato Beetle? He had no answer.

I sure wish we could get some drier weather!

Alison Wiediger, Au Naturel Farm

Sent from my iPad

On May 24, 2011, at 3:38 PM, "Marcy" <mlynnn AT wildblue.net> wrote:

> I don't think so... This is a longer beetle than Colorado Potato beetle
and
> not as round, gray/brown and no stripes.
> I'll go take a picture. We didn't have them until June last year but we've
> had some warm and really dry weather here this year and lots of pests are
> way ahead of their season.
> Marcy
>
> -----Original Message-----
> From: market-farming-bounces AT lists.ibiblio.org
> [mailto:market-farming-bounces AT lists.ibiblio.org] On Behalf Of Lloyd
> Blackwell
> Subject: [Market-farming] blister bugs?
>
> My farm is in the Missouri ozarks. I have never had blister bugs
> before july or august . By that time the potatoes are done. We do have
> a recurring problem with Colorado Potato beetle/. I wonder if we
> aren't calling the same insect different names
> Lloyd
>
> Lloyd Blackwell
> lloydblackwell AT centurytel.net
> www.blackwellfamilyproduce.net
>
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