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This is sure a weird year. Not that I am
complaining, but it's June 20 and I have seen exactly 2 Jap beetles, only I
think they were both the same one. Typically the first strays appear in
late May to chew the last of the roses. I suppose I'll wake up tomorrow to
find they all came up at once. Maybe the cooler soils in May slowed
them down. Maybe the drought last year reduced the population. Now
that I think of it, the chickens have hardly been pitched a single Jap grub
this year. The June bug grubs have been at least as thick as
ever, maybe worse.
Could it be the
Milky Spore has finally kicked in? It was off the market
when we bought the place, so about 12 years ago I brought dirt from where
we'd used it 11 years earlier in the TN Valley. I dried and sieved
the dirt and spread it. I wouldn't expect such a dramatic drop
off though. (I figured that some was better than none.) Weather
is the usual cause of extreme fluctuations in Jap
beetle population.
Anyone else missing their usual
generous Japanese beetle crop? Donna
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