What does a flea beetle look like?

Up close, flea beetles look like tiny beetles. They’re shiny, and can appear to be black, brown or even bluish in color. Some species may even have spots or stripes. From far away, they look like tiny black or brown specks on the leaves of a plant.

How do you kill flea beetles?

Control and Prevention

1. Try this homemade spray to control flea beetles: 2 cups rubbing alcohol, 5 cups water, and 1 tablespoon liquid soap.
2. Dusting your plants with plain talcum powder repels flea beetles on tomatoes, potatoes, peppers, and other plants.
3. Use white sticky traps to capture flea beetles as they jump.

What damage do flea beetles do?

Adult flea beetles cause the most damage by feeding on the leaves and stems. They create shallow pits and small rounded, irregular holes (usually less than 1/8th inch) in the leaves. This type of damage is unique to flea beetles.

Where do flea beetles come from?

Flea beetles overwinter in leaf litter or wooded areas and emerge in early spring to begin feeding on their preferred host plant. The adult beetles mate and lay eggs in the soil nearby and, when the eggs hatch, the developing larvae feed on plant roots and underground stems.

Do coffee grounds deter flea beetles?

Coffee Grounds Using coffee grounds for these black beetles in the garden is a popular remedy among gardeners. It will repel the critters as they hate the smell. However, be careful which plants you put them around. While they’re a great natural fertilizer, un-composted coffee grounds can adversely affect some plants.

What attracts beetles in your house?

Different materials attract specific types of beetles into homes and yards. Many species seek out stored grains and packaged foods, while others feed on garden plants, wood, or fabric. They may enter the house through cracks in the foundation or gaps around door and window frames.

What insect eats flea beetles?

A number of natural predators can be employed to keep flea beetles in check, including two that parasitize it: Braconid wasps and tachinid flies. In both cases, the larval stage feeds on the flea beetle, while the adults feed on nectar and pollen; some species are even important pollinators.

What eats a flea beetle?

Will coffee grounds keep Japanese beetles away?

If you have some leftover coffee grounds at your home don’t just dispose it. You can boil the coffee grounds along with a few gallons of water and use it as a spray or simply spread some coffee grounds on the soil. This will help keep away the beetles, or suffocate them to death.

Do coffee grounds deter aphids?

Coffee grounds are usually touted as a cure-all when it comes to controlling garden pests like aphids, snails, and slugs, but truth is… there’s no truth to their pest-repelling power. Save those coffee grounds, banana peels, and other kitchen scraps for your compost pile instead, where they’ll be much more useful.

What are the different colors of flea beetles?

There are numerous species, and their colors vary widely depending on the region where they are found. The beetles come in some very fancy colors including black, greenish-black, brown, metallic, white-striped, or yellow and orange striped. Don’t be fooled.

What kind of beetle has black and yellow stripes?

Black and yellow stripes run the length of its wing covers. This little beetle is a serious crop pest and is similar in its look to the western corn rootworm beetle ( Diabrotica virgifera ). You can tell the beetles apart because the striped cucumber beetle has a black abdomen.

What kind of damage does a flea beetle do?

Adults eat the foliage of plants and leave behind holes in the foliage. You will see damage on plants of all sizes, but the damage on seedlings is the most concerning since it can quickly kill vulnerable young plants. Of less concern is the damage to established plants.

Where do flea beetles go in the spring?

Adult beetles overwinter in the soil, leaf debris, or grassy borders of the garden or field. At just about the same time when we begin to emerge from our homes in springtime, so do they. As temperature warm, they get busy. Adults find a healthy host and begin chowing down after a long winter’s nap.