Asiatic Lilies...?

Question

My lily was stripped of leaves and flowers by a beetle like bug. Any suggestions?

Like cures or prevention/remedies?

Answer 1

It could be a number of things that might have eaten it, but the best solution for bugs that eat leaves is horticultural oils/soaps. Completely organic, no harm to the ground, and they coat the leaves of your plant (and the bugs!) so the insects either don't like the taste, or they drowned on contact.

Or, if you dont want to go buy some, you can mix up your own. Take your normal liquid hand soap or dishwasher soap, and just add water. The normal ratio is 1 part soap to 10 parts water. Then, just put it in a sprayer bottle and spray it on.

Good luck!

Answer 2

Well, slugs will devastate young lilies (lost six lovely lilies this spring myself to their munching) but once they get to the flowering stage you'd have to be pretty unlucky.

It sounds like the work of that evil little beggar, the lily beetle. Bright red, about 5mm long? (Like this... http://www.dgsgardening.btinternet.co.uk...

Best thing is to keep an eye out for adult beetles -- from spring right until the lily dies back -- and squash on sight. Put something underneath to catch them on; they have the technique of dropping off the plant to hide in the soil if disturbed.

Especially important for next year, check under leaves for lily beetle eggs (orange, laid standing up, in lines so they look like tiny rows of skittles.) Just wipe them off with a bit of tissue/ rag.

Also, if you see damaged leaves with a gammy black sticky mess on them, strip them from the plant and destroy: inside the gamminess is a lily beetle larva, and they're the destroyers of every part of the lily.

You have my sympathy: I hate killing things but (many battered lilies later) have lost all sense of mercy as far as lily beetles are concerned. Grrr....

Answer 3

Sounds like the lily beetle, kill off any adults and look out for eggs and squash them too.