Help! Beetles have decimated my corn crop!

We have Japanese beetles and corn sap beetles (I believe) like a plague in our corn patch! Our nice crop has been decimated. Is there any short answer to this solution (that doesn't involve harmful insecticides) that could allow us to spare what remains of our corn? Any preventative ideas for next year? Thanks for any help.

Birds like to eat beetles. I have these brown birds with red chest live in the rafters of my house. I was going to get rid of them until I saw one of them swoop down and grab a grasshopper/locust and eat it. They haven't bothered my tomatoes, either. Just be carefull not to attract the wrong kinds of birds as blackbirds/crows might eat crops as well as bugs.

Buy a bird house and some bird feeders that feed water and food to attract them. Withold the food later so they'll eat the bugs.

Chickens are good, too. I used to have chickens before my wife said it was a cruel practice to eat your pets and forebade me from raising chickens for food. I have a problem with grasshoppers and crickets, but when I had the chickens, all the beetles, grasshoppers, and crickets dissappeared. Chickens love to eat corn, but the corn husks should keep them out of your corn. If the bugs are up high, the chickens might have problems eating them since they don't fly too good. I have never grown corn, so I don't know how high corn plants get.

However, it might be good that the corn is high up as chicken can be destructive. They ate my lettuce crop when I had them. They aren't very bright, so I think the corn husks should keep them out of your corn.

There are chicken hatcheries all over the country so you should be able to get a dozen chicks within 24 hours to save your crops....

Thanks for your advice, "mater." :) Unfortunately, the chickens are out of the question. The garden is on property I don't own and it's sort of in the middle of town! I have considered trying to draw in various types of birds with flowering plants and birdhouses, etc., but I'm not sure how long it would take to bring the ones who would be most helpful. That may be an idea we hold onto for next year! Thanks for the warning about attracting the wrong type of birds. That could be bad. Does anyone know specifically what birds like to feast on Japanese beetles and what to do to draw them in?

This message was edited Jul 18, 2007 11:42 PM

A bird house with small holes is good since big holes will attract big birds like crows, which are bad. Small birds are good. Small birds may still eat your veggies, but they are less likely to do so than crows and blackbirds. I think the corn husks are enough to keep small birds with tiny beaks out of your corn while they eat the bugs on your corn....

ONE THING 7 IN ONE DUST GET DUST YOU PLATS ALL OF THEM YOULL BE FINE

"7 IN ONE DUST"
hellraizer112, I keep seeing you recommend this. Do you mean "sevin" dust? If not, what is in this dust?

I think any kind of wormwood grown near it will keep them away. It releases something in the soil that keeps away bugs. I have some seeds for trade if any body wants some. I have a bunch of seeds to trade anybody who wants to check out my lists, thanks. God Bless!

Hello again Catmad! I think maybe "sevin" is what's being referred to here, also. I'm very frightened of pesticides/insecticides. We're particularly avoiding Sevin because of what I'm reading about the crisis facing some of our pollenating insects. Their numbers seem to be on the decrease, especially honey bees. From what I've heard, Sevin and other similar insecticides pose a serious threat to a lot of our beneficial bugs. I hate to say too much because I haven't done the research myself, but it sounds right to me!

Sparisi1122, thanks so much for the advice! That's one I haven't heard yet. Let me do some looking about the wormwood and I may be getting back to you. Hmmm..."Wormwood"...maybe I'll be inspired to sit out by the garden reading C.S. Lewis' "Screwtape Letters"...

Thanks again to all and happy gardening!

(catmad - so...how about that salsa??? be honest!) :)