Our Pest Control Expert, Julian Ives, has spent many years advising commercial growers and gardeners on the subject of safe and efficient natural pest control treatments.

Here he shares his experience on the problems Leaf Beetles can cause in the garden...

Red Lily Beetle
Bright red beetles that have black heads and are about 6-7mm long. In the spring reddish brown eggs appear on the underside of leaves, which develop into    reddish brown grubs, which often cover themselves in black excrement to ward off predators. The adults are active from March/April until the autumn and are usually found on lilies and fritillaries. Most of the damage is done by the Lily larvae, which strip plant foliage and then attack the flower buds. Damage increases as the summer goes on.

Flea Beetle
The damage from this pest, that is present from April-May, is often seen before the beetles. These small beetles are shiny black in colour, sometimes with a yellow stripe on their wing case. When disturbed the beetles can be seen jumping from the plants. They attack vegetable plants including cabbage,
radish, swede and turnip. Some beetles will also attack flowering plants like wallflowers, stocks and aubrietias. Seedlings are especially vulnerable and damage appears as small holes in the leaves.

Rosemary Leaf Beetle
This is quite a recent pest addition to the UK with the adults and larvae feeding on the leaves and shoots of rosemary, lavender, sage and thyme. The adult beetles appear in late spring and are metallic green with purple stripes on their wing cases. They mate in the summer, laying eggs that then develop into larvae. The larvae can be identified by their grey-white colour with dark stripes
on their bodies and they have a resemblance to slugs. 

Natural Choice Treatments
Keeping the three species of leaf beetles above off crops with fleece or insect netting is an option or if you are too late there are some safe sprays that can be sprayed onto edible crops to kill the adult beetles; Savona fatty acid and Protector Natural Insect Killing spray.