Flea beetle observation

TZ-OH6 · June 12, 2008

I noticed something an odd thing this year in that the flea beetles only attacked my seedlings after I planted them and mulched with lawn clippings. Let me clarify a bit . my seedlings, about 80, have been sitting in the yard a few feet from thier final destination "hardening off" for a month or more. I put them out soon after potting up to take advantage of the sunny weather but the harsher conditions and lack of fertilizer stalled them. No serious bug problems. Some of them went into the ground and were immediately mulched with lawn clippings. The flea beatles hit them right away, but the potted seedlings nearby were the same as always. I didn't notice this in previous years because I never had so many potted seedlings sitting around after planting/mulching.

I generally spray once or twice and the problem goes away quickly but I'm wondering if this has more to do with the age of the plant/establishment in the garden, or the aging of the grass clippings.

Anybody else ever notice anything like this?

beef1020 · June 12, 2008

I had kind of the same thing happen. I had some flea beetles on the plants when they first went in the ground, maybe for the first 2 weeks. Since then i have not seem a flea beetle on my tomatoes.

As a side note there are plenty of flea beetles on my potatoes so they could be acting like a trap crop...

dice · June 12, 2008

Maybe the grass clippings are full of flea beetle eggs
that hatch after you mulch.

ctx00978 · June 13, 2008

Yeah I noticed something similiar this year. I didn't mulch right away after planting in my new raised beds. I didn't have any flea beetles. When I added the straw, I had an immediate problem. It became obvious to me that they must have been in the straw as I planted my tomatoes out in 3 stages. By the time I planted out in the 3rd and 4th beds, I had an A-ha! moment. They must have over-wintered there. Lucky me!

Stacie

TZ-OH6 · June 14, 2008

Flea beetles lay their eggs in the soil mostly, and the turnaround time from hatching to adult infestation is too long for what I'm seeing. Its more likely, that the scent or color is attracting them. If Stacie is having the problem with fresh straw it might be a color issue related to the way white flies etc. are attracted to yellow sticky traps (and light green nutrient deficient foliage).

June 12, 2008	#1
TZ-OH6 Tomatovillian™ Join Date: Feb 2008 Location: Mid-Ohio Posts: 850	Flea beetle observation I noticed something an odd thing this year in that the flea beetles only attacked my seedlings after I planted them and mulched with lawn clippings. Let me clarify a bit . my seedlings, about 80, have been sitting in the yard a few feet from thier final destination "hardening off" for a month or more. I put them out soon after potting up to take advantage of the sunny weather but the harsher conditions and lack of fertilizer stalled them. No serious bug problems. Some of them went into the ground and were immediately mulched with lawn clippings. The flea beatles hit them right away, but the potted seedlings nearby were the same as always. I didn't notice this in previous years because I never had so many potted seedlings sitting around after planting/mulching. I generally spray once or twice and the problem goes away quickly but I'm wondering if this has more to do with the age of the plant/establishment in the garden, or the aging of the grass clippings. Anybody else ever notice anything like this?

June 12, 2008	#3
dice Tomatovillian™ Join Date: Jan 2007 Location: PNW Posts: 4,743	Maybe the grass clippings are full of flea beetle eggs that hatch after you mulch. __________________ -- alias

June 12, 2008	#2
beef1020 Tomatovillian™ Join Date: May 2008 Location: New Market Md Posts: 17	I had kind of the same thing happen. I had some flea beetles on the plants when they first went in the ground, maybe for the first 2 weeks. Since then i have not seem a flea beetle on my tomatoes. As a side note there are plenty of flea beetles on my potatoes so they could be acting like a trap crop...

June 13, 2008	#4
ctx00978 Tomatovillian™ Join Date: Mar 2008 Location: Missouri Posts: 82	Yeah I noticed something similiar this year. I didn't mulch right away after planting in my new raised beds. I didn't have any flea beetles. When I added the straw, I had an immediate problem. It became obvious to me that they must have been in the straw as I planted my tomatoes out in 3 stages. By the time I planted out in the 3rd and 4th beds, I had an A-ha! moment. They must have over-wintered there. Lucky me! Stacie

June 14, 2008	#5
TZ-OH6 Tomatovillian™ Join Date: Feb 2008 Location: Mid-Ohio Posts: 850	Flea beetles lay their eggs in the soil mostly, and the turnaround time from hatching to adult infestation is too long for what I'm seeing. Its more likely, that the scent or color is attracting them. If Stacie is having the problem with fresh straw it might be a color issue related to the way white flies etc. are attracted to yellow sticky traps (and light green nutrient deficient foliage).