Series: Managing Japanese Beetles

A growing nuisance to gardeners, farmers, landscapers and homeowners across the Midwest, Japanese beetles devour ornamental plants like birches, crabapples and roses, and likewise feast on crop plants like apples, pears, beans, corn and many other fruit and vegetable species. Although this invasive species of insect was identified across many parts of in Wisconsin through the 1990s, it was first detected in the state in the 1960s. While certain methods of managing this troublesome beetle can yield some success, warmer winter conditions could mean larger populations in the future.