Irondale said:

I'm talking beetles here. 1-2" long, stripes on their backs.

Found one in my potted plants and while trying nicely to
remove him/her, it started hissing at me! I've been around,
and I've never seen a beetle hiss and want to fight. No more
nice lady.

But then came home from work and first chore to do is
water my potted plants...and I'll be danged if there wasn't
another beetle in the exact same plant only BIGGER!
He put up a pretty good fight but lost the war.

The plants were Mums so I got no help from them!

Now to look up and see just what kind (oxymoron) beetles these
were.

Large beetle with stripes sounds like some sort of scarab beetle.
http://bugguide.net/node/view/187

Maybe one of the Lined June Beetles (genus Polyphylla)?
http://bugguide.net/node/view/8123

There is one species known for it's hissing:
http://bugguide.net/node/view/32138

--
Pat in Plymouth MI

"Vegetables are like bombs packed tight with all kinds of important
nutrients..." --Largo Potter, Valkyria Chronicles

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