"Cheryl Isaak" wrote in message
...
On 1/26/06 7:20 PM, in article ,
"Ann" wrote:
"bugzgrl" expounded:
Hello everyone,
I am an entomologist (bug scientist) interesting in tracking the spread
of a nasty ornamental lily pest called the lily leaf beetle (or scarlet
lily beetle). It's a small (5-8mm) bright red beetle with black
legs, head and antennae. There are no spots or markings on the red
body. If anyone, particularly in Canada or the U.S.A., has spotted
this critter in their garden in the past, I would greatly appreciate
some information: your location (city, state/province, postal/zip
code) and the year that you found it. Feel free to include any tidbits
of info (for example, the species you found it on) that you think might
be useful.
I plan to present some information about this pest at the North
American Lily Society meeting in Edmonton and would like to have some
recent statistics to accompany the talk.
I recently completed my M.Sc. thesis about the lily beetle at Carleton
University in Ottawa, Ontario. If anyone has any sightings to report,
or has any questions regarding the beetle or my work, please contact me
at .
Thanking you in advance,
Crystal Ernst
They've been in my garden since 1996 - but then again, I'm within 20
miles of their origin here in Massachusetts - lucky me 
(
I think the beetles arrived within in 2 years of that here. Maybe one!
Until there is a better solution then hand picking, I give up on lilies.
Not
my daylilies that are, thankfully unaffected, but glory days of scent are
gone her.
Cheryl
I'm with you, Cheryl.
IN 1995 I started a home nursery, and I was having some great fun selling
bunches of flowers along with produce at our Farmers Market. In June and
July of '96 and '97 I was pocketing some good weekend change when the
Lilies were in bloom. One stalk of Rubrums in a mixed bouquet... YEE HAH!
I had "colonies" -- and was adding more.
In 1997 I saw my first Lily Beetle.
The only bulb lilies that live here anymore are some weedy L. tigridium
that I am rouging out, and one L. Superbum that doesn't seem to be the
least attractive to the Lily Beetle.
All the rest are gone, and I'm not replacing them. I miss them dearly.
Sue
Western Maine.