How do you deal with June bugs and Asiatic beetles that are targeting basil plants?
Question:
How do you deal with June bugs/asiatic beetles? They’re targeting our basil, and any fresh transplants in our garden. We have made light and soapy water traps, but curious if there are any organic methods for getting them at the larval stage so they don’t emerge and cause damage?
Answer:
Unfortunately, I’m not aware of any organic control methods other than what you’ve tried. I have had luck mitigating the adults in my own garden by laying a tarp below the blackberry bush they always swarm to, and then vigorously brushing the plant with a broom. The beetles tend to let go quickly and fall onto the tarp en masse, where it’s then easy to dispose of them–this is probably not viable for more delicate plants like basil, but hand brushing and picking the plants can at least help. But for the grubs, I’m only aware of the insecticide interventions as somewhat effective treatments to reduce the population. You can read more about that, if you’re interested, on the UMaine Cooperative Extension IPM page for White Grubs.
With apologies for not being able to give you a more positive answer, I wish you happy gardening, nonetheless.