THE Japanese Beetle Thread (merged)

Heineken

Thanks, Ludi.
I hope people will consider these designs, or modifications thereof, for their fruit plantings. The grape structures are not difficult to build. For a relatively small cost and effort you get the opportunity to grow grapes without ANY insect pressure and ANY pesticides. I find this incredibly exciting! Grapes can be grown in large quantities this way, and the excess can be dehydrated into raisins. My first crop will be the year after next.

I ripped 2 x 4's to produce most of the lumber used. This reduces the cost of construction and maximizes the sunlight. Some of the photos illustrate the "bunching" technique for stapling the tulle to the wood. As I said before, this is essential to prevent wind damage (tearing). We've already had several nasty thunderstorms without any damage to the tulle.
_________________
"Actually, humans died out long ago."
---Abused, abandoned hunting dog

"Things have entered a stage where the only change that is possible is for things to get worse."
---Me and my brother

skyemoor

frankthetank

Those are some impressive structures. I don't think you'll have any problem with beetles under those.
Can you get inside to prune/etc???
Do you plan on leaving them up year round?
Did you use your whole roll of tulle?
If you have any of that bird netting you can buy, would you say tulle is weaker or stronger then that? I bought some and i already had to patch it.
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Clothing should be optional.

Heineken

Good questions, Frank. Yes, I can get inside to water, prune, or pick fruit by crawling under the bottom edge of the material. The material isn't attached to the ground. You can just leave a flap at the bottom and rest a board or a brick or a piece of firewood on it.
I can't leave the material up around the fruit trees year-round since they have to get pollinated; also, winter snow and ice would devastate it.

I would say that tulle is similar to bird netting in terms of toughness, but I'm not sure yet since the experiment is still in process. You have to handle it fairly carefully. But so far, once it's properly installed, it seems to endure a good while.
_________________
"Actually, humans died out long ago."
---Abused, abandoned hunting dog

"Things have entered a stage where the only change that is possible is for things to get worse."
---Me and my brother

Heineken

I'm bumping this up in case interested people missed the photos of the protective barriers on page 12. So far I've found only a single Japanese beetle on the plants I've protected in this manner!
The grape structures are more practical and cost-efficient to build and cover. If Japanese beetles and other bugs have been dissuading you from planting grapes, now you can grow them!
_________________
"Actually, humans died out long ago."
---Abused, abandoned hunting dog

"Things have entered a stage where the only change that is possible is for things to get worse."
---Me and my brother

cudabachi

Excellent pics of those structures Heineken. And to be honest with you guys, I had no idea that JB's were so destructive.

When I was in college I worked at a rice experimental station in the entomology department and I recall constructing similar structures (though even larger) over plots of rice for study of the incests living in the crop. We used a similar material to keep all but the tiniest of pests out.

Heineken

Thanks Cudabachi. I'm surprised that there hasn't been more of a response. I'll admit that the tree-protection structures may be more elaborate than the average person might be willing to attempt, but the grape ones are a relative snap. They're practical. My grape plants, planted in April, are now approaching the second wire (in my Kniffen-system trellis). That's almost five feet. They obviously get all the sun and air movement they need. Japanese beetles are swarming everywhere, but there's not one bug, of any kind, feeding on the grape plants!

Without the protection (or heavy pesticides), the grape plants would already be half-defoliated. Japanese beetles are especially fond of them. What sorts of insect pests are a bane to you in eastern Venezuela?
_________________
"Actually, humans died out long ago."
---Abused, abandoned hunting dog

"Things have entered a stage where the only change that is possible is for things to get worse."
---Me and my brother

Heineken

I seem to be the only one posting here, but that's OK.
Bad news: A thunderstorm blew large holes in the tulle covering one of my grape structures. Apparently sunlight had weakened it. Now it just falls apart when I handle it. To get extra mileage out of the material I had on hand, I had stretched the tulle very tightly across this particular structure; perhaps the stretching contributed to the weakening (in an interaction with the UV radiation).
So if you try this method, don't stretch the tulle tightly. Leave it fairly loose.
_________________
"Actually, humans died out long ago."
---Abused, abandoned hunting dog

"Things have entered a stage where the only change that is possible is for things to get worse."
---Me and my brother

Ludi

I was worried about that, H. If it isn't UV stabilized, delicate fabric like that is likely to break down very rapidly in the sun (especially in the South).

Th row cover fabrics are more durable. Unfortunately, these are visually much more obnoxious than the tulle (which, btw, I thought was a brilliant idea until I realized about the UV problem).

row cover
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pedalling_faster · Intermediate Crude Joined: Dec 10, 2005 Posts: 946

Heineken

Ludi

Window screen will be more durable, certainly more expensive, and I'd be concerned it would also block the light. Air movement would be better than the row covers, though.

Here's some prices on rolls of various window screening:

link
_________________
"...powerdown so soft and fluffy you'll think you're living in a pillow." - jboogy

Heineken

Heineken

Holes continue to appear in the tulle. It just spontaneously falls apart. I keep repairing by gluing patches over the holes and tears, but I can no longer recommend this material. All it had to do was last for 8 weeks (through the core of the JB season), but it can't stand up to the Virginia sun.

I'm disappointed. I'll have to try to find a substitute material. Any specific suggestions are most welcome. Remember, the material has to allow sun, air, and rainfall to penetrate quite freely, but the holes have to be small enough to block access by the beetle; also, it must be reasonably affordable. And UV stable, at least for 8 lousy weeks!
_________________
"Actually, humans died out long ago."
---Abused, abandoned hunting dog

"Things have entered a stage where the only change that is possible is for things to get worse."
---Me and my brother

frankthetank

Thanks for testing it Heinekin... I've tried all kinds of different things over the last few years that have been failures! Also thrown away a lot of money on various things that didn't quite work out the way i planned. Live and learn. If you don't try, you'd never know. Its almost like you need a metal/mesh sort of material. Too bad the cost would probably be very high. That hardware cloth probably wouldn't work.
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Clothing should be optional.