The destructive power of the Colorado beetle

Do you have beautiful, high-yielding potatoes in your garden or in the field? Are you expecting mega tubers? Well, then you shouldn’t fall asleep and take care of your plants. A big danger is the Colorado potato beetle. This infamous beetle is among the most feared potato destroyers. You can recognize it quite easily – thanks to its typical rounded shape and yellow and black longitudinal lines. The head, chest and legs are yellow to orange. Tentacles are deep black. How did the Colorado beetle spread all over the world? How do they reproduce and what do they feed on? Well, read on and we should tell you.

Their homeland is America

They really come from North America and from there they totally infested the rest of the continent. The first mentions of the potato beetle in Europe date back to 1936. But supposedly, this beetle arrived as early as 1877. Once these bugs appear they reproduce quickly and soon they are all over the field they can literally eliminate thousands of plants.

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Unbelievable and quick reproduction

Adult bugs hibernate approximately 30 cm below the soil’s surface and in May and June, they climb up and feed on young potato plants. Soon they mate. The female can lay from 300 to 700 eggs under one leaf. There are about 20 to 60 eggs in one cluster. One female is able to lay 2, 400 eggs in 2 years. Larvae hatch between 4 and 10 days. It goes through four development stages quickly while eating potato leaves. When they grow up, they simply fall down to the soil and dig themselves in reaching a depth of 4 to 10 cm. Here they pupate and after 2 to 3 weeks they are ready to hibernate.

Photo: Pixabay

What does the potato bug feed on?

Usually plants belonging to the Solanacea or the nightshades family, but potatoes are favourite – but you can also see bugs on tomatoes. They make typical holes in the plant’ leaves but if you have plenty of them they can eat all leaves, and if they do, it is usually over.

How can you fight the potato beetle?

The best way is the good old and laborious removal of each bug. You can also experiment with a predatory bug that can kill potato beetles, called Perillus bioculatus, and finally, there are chemicals that you can use. Unfortunately, the potato beetle is often immune to insecticides.

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