JAPANESE BEETLE 
 
 K 
 
 
 Adult beetles feeding on fruit and leaves, about one-half natural size. 
 Insert, adult beetle, about twice natural size. Figures below ground represent 
 seasonal history of the Japanese beetle. Left to right, mature grub (late spring); 
 pupa; beetle laying eggs (summer); developing grubs (late summer and fall); all 
 about twice natural size. 
 
 (See other side for life history and control) 
 
 Bureau of Entomology and Plant Quarantine 
 United States Department of Agriculture 
 
 Picture Sheet No. 4 
 
UNIVERSITY OF FLOR'DA 
 
 JAPANESE BEETLE || 1 11 1||||| ||| ||| ||||| ||||| 11 1||| ||||| ||||| 11 1||||| |||| I 
 (Popillia japonica NewTnan) 3 1262 08721 6551 
 
 Life History 
 
 Japanese beetles overwinter as grubs, or larvae, in the soil at 
 depths of 2 to 6 inches. During April they move nearer the surface 
 and feed on the roots of plants. Early in June the grubs stop feed- 
 ing, pass through a transformation stage, and then become the adult 
 beetles. By early July the beetles are present in numbers, flying 
 about and feeding extensively on the foliage, fruit, and blossoms of 
 many trees and plants. During July and August the females go 
 into the ground and deposit eggs; these hatch into small grubs, 
 which feed on roots of grass and other plants. By fall these larvae 
 are mostly full grown ; as winter approaches they move deeper into 
 the soil. Grubs are more abundant in turf than in other situations 
 and cause serious injury to lawns. 
 
 Control of the Beetle 
 
 Protective or repellent sprays. — The foliage of fruit, shade, and 
 ornamental trees and shrubs can be protected from beetle attack by 
 the use of protective or repellent sprays. These should be applied 
 when the beetles first appear, and additional applications should be 
 made as needed to maintain a protective coating on all portions of 
 the plant subject to attack as long as the beetles are present. The 
 most useful sprays are as follows : 
 
 1. Powdered lead arsenate, 10 ounces; wheat flour, 6 ounces; water, 10 
 
 gallons (for ornamental trees and shrubs). 
 
 2. Powdered lead arsenate, 10 ounces; light-pressed fish oil, 2^2 ounces; 
 
 water, 10 gallons (for ornamental trees and shrubs). 
 
 3. Aluminum sulphate, V2 pound; hydrated lime, 2 pounds; water, 10 gal- 
 
 lons (for ornamental trees and shrubs, bearing apple, plum, and 
 cherry trees, grapevines, small fruits, and flowering plants). 
 
 4. Powdered derris (4 percent rotenone), 5V, ounces; water, 10 gallons (for 
 
 bearing apple, plum, cherry, and peach trees, bearing grapes and small 
 fruits, and flowering plants). 
 
 Contact sprays. — Contact sprays are of value in killing beetles . 
 if care is taken to actually hit them with the liquid, but they may not 
 afford satisfactory protection of foliage. The contact sprays in- 
 clude: Spray 4, listed above; commercial fish-oil soap or a good 
 grade of household soap, 3 pounds to 10 gallons of water; and 
 the commercial pyrethrum sprays, at rates recommended by the 
 manufacturers. 
 
 Control of Grubs 
 
 Lawns can be protected from injury by Japanese beetle grubs 
 for a 5-year period by making one application of lead arsenate at 
 the rate of 10 pounds per 1,000 square feet of lawn. The poison 
 should be mixed with 25 times its volume of moist sand, soil, or 
 other suitable material, and broadcast by hand. 
 
 Cautions in the Use of Lead Arsenate 
 
 Lead arsenate is poisonous to man and animals, and children or 
 animals should not be allowed access to it. Great care should be 
 taken to avoid getting lead arsenate into the mouth or into cuts or 
 abrasions of the skin. Grass should be washed thoroughly with a 
 hose, after the treatment is applied, to remove any poisonous resi- 
 due. Domestic animals should not be allowed to feed on treated 
 grass or on or under sprayed trees or shrubbery while any poisonous 
 residue is visible. 8-12518 
 
 October 1938 U. S. Government Printing Office 
 
 For sale by the Superintendent of Documents, Washington, D. C. Price 5 cents