Garden Pest Control, Pests of Perennials

Pests build up most quickly when just one or two kinds of plants grow, so a bed of mixed perennials is less likely to be decimated than a bed of roses or petunias. That's because the pests that prefer specific plants will have a harder time finding them when they're "hidden" among all those other perennials. That doesn't mean perennials are pest-free, though, as gardeners who've encountered borers in the bearded irises, Japanese beetles on their hollyhocks, or slugs on their hostas can attest.

One cause of pests on perennial beds is the nature of perennials themselves: The plants are in place a long time, giving pest populations a chance to establish themselves over many growing seasons. Fortunately, there are five ways to keep pests at an acceptable level in your garden.

1. Grow resistant species and cultivars when available.
2. Use good cultural practices.
3. Apply biological controls, which are alive and often self-perpetuating.
4. Use manual controls, including barriers and traps.
5. Use insecticidal sprays and dusts when required.

The best and easiest way to keep pests under control is to find them when they've just arrived and there aren't many of them. If you can start control early, your perennials will suffer minimal damage, and you can usually use a simple control. Handpicking a few Japanese beetles as far better than coping with bug sprays and stripped plants. Become a garden detective: When you're weeding, watering, or just out strolling in your garden, check your plants for pests and signs of feeding injury. Make sure you're in the garden every day—pest populations can build up fast. Try to familiarize yourself with the major perennial pests so you'll know what you're looking at, then apply appropriate controls.

Corn Aphids Photo credit: Department of Agriculture Western Australia

Asiatic Garden Beetle Photo credit: Integrated Pest Management Resources, MSU

Fuller Rose Beetle Photo credit: University of California

Pest Name & Description	Plants Attacked	Controls
Aphids 1/12-1/5-in. long; green, reddish, or blue-black; pear-shaped; with 2 tubes projecting back from abdomen; some are winged, some wingless. Damage: Leaves, stems, and buds distorted, sticky; look for clusters of small insects.	Many	Wash pests from plants with a strong spray of water; use insecticidal soap sprays for serious infestations.
Asiatic Garden Beetle 1/3-in. long, brown, velvety beetles. Damage: Leaves with irregular holes in edges.	Many	Handpick adults at night into can of soapy water; spray heavily infested plantings with pirethrins or rotenone.
Fuller Rose Beetle 1/3-in. long, gray, long-nosed weevils. Damage: "Ticket-punch" holes around leaf margins.	Chrysanthemum Hibiscus Penstemon Plumbago Primula Rudbeckia Scabiosa	Handpick adults at night into can of soapy water; shake plants over drop-cloth or sheet in early morning and collect weevils.
Japanese Beetle 1/2-in. long, metallic-blue or green beetles with coppery wing covers. Damage: Stems exude sawdust-like material and break; leaves wilt; iris borers cause irregular tunnels in leaves, damaged or rotted rhizomes.	Many	Apply Bacillus thuringiensis (BT) at first sign of borers. Destroy weeds where borers winter. Crush borers in iris leaves; dust the base of iris plants with pirethrins in spring.
True Bugs 1/16-1/2 in. long, usually shield-shaped; may be brown, black, green or brilliantly colored and patterned. Damage: Buds and leaves deformed or dwarfed.	Many	Handpick into can of soapy water. Spray with insecticidal soap; treat severe infestation with rotenone. Destroy weeds where bugs overwinter.
Cutworms Gray or brownish moths. Damage: Seedlings your young plants cut off at soil level.	Many	Place plant collars in soil around seedlings or transplants.
Leafminers 1/10-in. long wasplike, with yellow-striped black bodies and clear wings. Damage: Leaves with tan or brown blotches or serpentine tunnels.	Acontium Aquilegia Chrysanthemums Delphinium Dianthus Eupatorium Gypsophila Heuchera Lobelia Primula Salvia Verbena	Prune off and destroy infested leaves. Spray leaves weekly with insecticidal soap at the first sign of leafminers. Remove garden debris in fall.
cutworms Photo credit: www.agric.gov.ab.ca Leafminers leaf damage Photo credit: University of Florida Scales Photo credit: Honolulu Rose Society
Scales 1/12-1/5-in. long, with grayish, brownish orange, reddish brown, or cottony white shells; males are winged, females wingless. Damage: Leaves turn yellow, drop; plants may die.	Helianthus Iberis Monarda Opuntia Paeonia Phlox Verbena	Prune off infested stems and leaves. remove scales with a cotton swab dipped in rubbing alcohol; spray severe infestations with pyrethrins or rotenone.
Spider Mites Photo credit: Honolulu Rose Society Thrips Photo credit: Sven-Erik Spichiger PA-DCNR Whiteflies Photo credit: Alton N. Sparks, Jr. University of Georgia
Slugs and Snails 1/8-8 in. long; gray, tan, green, black, yellow, or spotted, with eyes at the tips of small tentacles; snails have a single spiral shell; slugs are shell-less. Damage: Leaves with large, ragged holes.	Alcea Asarum Begonia Bergenia Campanula Delphinium Hemerocallis Hosta Iris Ligularia Primula Sedum Viola	Place copper strips around beds; sprinkle sawdust, ashes, or diatomaceous earth around plants. Set beer traps in garden. Handpick at night into can of soapy water.
Spider Mites 1/50-in. long, reddish brown or pale spider-like mites with 8 legs; wingless. Damage: Leaves stippled, reddish to yellow, with fine webbing.	Many	Spray plants daily with a strong stream of water. Keep soil most. Chemical methods of control for severe infestations include the use of a miticide such as Avid.
Thrips 1/50-1/25-in. long, with yellow, brown, or blackish bodies and two pairs of fringed wings. Damage: Flowers buds die; petals distorted; growth stunted.	Many	Remove and destroy infested plant parts. destroy weeds where thrips overwinter. Unse insecticidal soap for serious infestations.
Whiteflies 1/12-in. long, white, moth-like insects. Damage: Leaves yellow; plant weakened.	Chrysanthemums Hibiscus Lupinus Primula Rudbeckia Salvia Verbena	Spray leaves with insecticidal soap. Destroy weeds to reduce whitefly populations.
European Earwigs Although they have wings, these insects rarely fly, preferring to run for cover when they are disturbed. Damage: Young earwigs can be destructive in springtime, but in summer and fall they feed on decaying plant remains thus transforming garden debris into useful humus. Large infestations may be a nuisance, and the insects can inflict a painful pinch.	Vegetables and flowers	Keep the garden clean of debris and remove earwig hiding places. Make earwig traps by placing damp, loosely rolled-up newspapers on the ground near plants. The insects will crawl into the rolls, which you can then discard. For severe infestations, spray soil around plants with diazinon in the late afternoon or evening, according to label directions.
Wireworms These slim cream-colored grubs eventually develop into click beetels and are especially common in new flower beds made in grass and lawns. Damage: The wireworms feed on fleshy roots, bulbs, and tubers, usually weakening the plant rather than killing it.	Flowers	Cultivate a number of times before planting to give predators an opportunity to eat them. Regular hoeing of established borders will help to reduce wireworm numbers. Control weeds, which may nourish them. Protect individual plants by forking in a soil insecticide when planting or by forking it in lightly around established plants.
Vine weevil These are becoming increasingly troublesome pests because they have developed resistance to many of the chemicals, which were previously used to control them. They are most commonly found in warm climates. Damage: Adult weevils eat foliage, characteristically by taking semicircular notches out of the leaf edges. Orange-headed white grubs feed on roots and tubers.	Most types of herbaceous plants are potential hosts; especailly damaging for primulas, Michaelmas, daisies, phlox, peony, cyclamens, heuchers, and tiarellas.	wash the soil off susceptible plants and repot in new potting soil. Some insecticides will control adults. Use biological control: a parasite eelworm seeks out and penetrates the vine weevil larvae; it carries a bacterium that infects and kills the larvae.

References:
1. Illustrated Encyclopedia of Perennials, Ellen Phillips &amdp; Colston Burrell