For gardeners who grow true lilies, the lily leaf beetle or scarlet lily beetle -- Lilioceris lilii -- first introduced into Massachusetts in 1992, has become an all-too-familiar sight. The bright red beetles and their slug-like feces-covered larvae can quickly strip lilies of their leaves, flowers and stems. Left unchecked, heavy infestations can completely defoliate plants in just a few weeks. While hand-picking beetles and repeated insecticide applications can reduce damage, those approaches are time-consuming, must be repeated every year and may also affect beneficial insects.
People are also reading…
Marianna Szűcs, Michigan State University Department of Entomology, and Lisa Tewksbury, University of Rhode Island, both contributed to the article.
