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Potato Invaders

pollinator

Posts: 4328

Location: Anjou ,France

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posted 12 years ago

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Its started already , now normally as a leftwing sort of Guy I 'm pretty open about immigration ( And for readers from the USA that means very leftwing)
But I must draw the Line at one immigrant we have here in France. As someone with an Irish ancestry when ever I see some open land I think potatos I love them And could eat them several Times a week.
Unfortunetly the immigrant in his nice brown And yellow jacket likes them even more than me.
So apart from the biodynamic method which I find did not work , nor planting linseed which did not work either any suggestions for controling thé colerado beatle

David

Living in Anjou , France,
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Judith Browning

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Location: a temperate, clay/loam spot on planet earth, the universe

3043

posted 12 years ago

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What works for us is a loose straw type mulch. We usually scythe a small pasture and dry the 'hay' for mulches.. What I understand is that the beetle cant climb through thr straw. I cant remember exactly but I think the eggs are laid on the leaves the larvae falls into the soil and the adults cant climb back up...but see what you can find online. This method seems reliable and made sense when I read it...somewhere.

"We're all just walking each other home." -Ram Dass
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David Livingston

pollinator

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Location: Anjou ,France

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posted 12 years ago

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Not so sure about that
The Beatles who are just waking from their Winter hibernation And still a bit slow moving ,do lay their eggs on the underside on the leaves of the potato where i know some of my little garden helpers do eat them( at this point I would like to say a big thank you to all the ladybirds in my garden )

I dont see how the straw would stop them as they do fly although I admit not that well

Score so far
5-0

But its early days yet

David

Living in Anjou , France,
For the many not for the few
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Judith Browning

Posts: 9886

Location: a temperate, clay/loam spot on planet earth, the universe

3043

posted 12 years ago

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I had to reread their lifecycle to be sure...apparently the adult overwinters in the soil and when they emerge if you have a thick layer of straw covering the ground they cant climb up and for sure cant fly through it. If they make it to the plant and lay eggs the larva will feed on the plant until mature and then drop to the ground to pupate. I am sorry I cant provide a link on this kindle but just do a search for colorado potato beetle life cycle.

"We're all just walking each other home." -Ram Dass
"Be a lamp, or a lifeboat, or a ladder."-Rumi
"It's all one song!" -Neil Young

David Livingston

pollinator

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Location: Anjou ,France

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posted 12 years ago

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Thanks for that I see the idea now And how it could work .
But then you would have to do it on the land where you grew potato last year. Unfortunetly I only have an allotment or jardin familial as they say in these parts 300 m² And my neighbours allotments are not run organically at all . So getting these very conventional french gardeners to help Will prove difficult. They try using chemicals And the beatles just laugh at them
I myself have split the usual large potato patch up into four smaller patches in order to stop the spread of pests And the blight I was thinking of making the size even smaller for Next year

David

Living in Anjou , France,
For the many not for the few
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Walter Jeffries

Posts: 1114

Location: Mountains of Vermont, USDA Zone 3

posted 12 years ago

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We find chickens and ducks to work extremely effectively against these and other plant pests. The trick is putting the poultry before the crop at the right time.

1) Before planting run the poultry through. Ideally do this after running pigs through.

2) Plant and let the crop establish itself.

3) Keep a watchful eye on things and if you see invaders then run a few poultry through the crop to get rid of the insects, etc.

Do not run the ducks through certain types of crops such as peas which are just too tempting. Most plants this works for. The bigger the plants the better.

Cheers,

-Walter Jeffries
Sugar Mountain Farm
Pastured Pigs, Sheep & Kids
in the mountains of Vermont
http://SugarMtnFarm.com/

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John Polk

steward

Posts: 7926

Location: Currently in Lake Stevens, WA. Home in Spokane

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posted 12 years ago

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A companion planting scheme:

Green beans help repel Colorado potato beetle, AND
Potatoes help repel Mexican bean beetle.

David Livingston

pollinator

Posts: 4328

Location: Anjou ,France

262

posted 12 years ago

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Thanks Walter
Unfortunetly the organisers of the site will not let us keep livestock ;-( not even bees which is one of the main reasons I am on the lookout for another site

Living in Anjou , France,
For the many not for the few
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David Livingston

pollinator

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Location: Anjou ,France

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posted 12 years ago

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John
Thanks for that I will try next year. I have some " trail of tears" do you think they Will work ?
Nô problems with mexicans as far as I know

David

Living in Anjou , France,
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Morgan Morrigan

Posts: 1400

Location: Verde Valley, AZ.

posted 12 years ago

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The potato and beans trick is the way to keep em away, but you need different timing to get rid of em.

Loosen the soil early in the area, so it warms quickly.
Plant an early pea crop, and an early squash mixed in.
when the beetles pop out, and lay, then chop and drop, and turn it under.

If you have some compost, dump it on, and let the bacteria have at the eggs.

Once everything has hatched out, then plant the potatoes.

Think you could overwinter sweet potatoes. If they lay on them, it wont hurt the sweets much to just lop the whole top off, and hot compost it.
Out here in the desert, we just use black plastic trash bags.

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Jeff Marchand

pollinator

Posts: 280

Location: Eastern Ontario

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posted 1 year ago

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I came looking for an organic way to kill colorado potato beetles, I have been told that diatomaceous earth works. Its too late for me this year to companion plant beans and potatoes but I like the idea. How do you do it? One row of potatoes, one row of beans or interplant them in the rows?

Do, there is no try --- Yoda
No one is interested in something you didn't do--- Gord Downie

Deane Adams

Posts: 679

235

posted 1 year ago

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Jeff, I used the potato and green bean plus calendula mixture in the past. I would just mix everything in that yearly bean rotation area. I would drop the potatoes at very random spots, followed with the beans and the flower transplants later after the soil had warmed.

I looked at it as mostly a bean patch with the bonus for a few more potatoes, I transplanted calendula (known as pot marigold in the old books) everywhere in my gardens and yard. I could never grow enough calendula, and would order many pounds during the year for use in a number of herbal preps that I made.

In all the years that I used this method, I never had a problem with any type of bean pests.

Good luck, try this next year, I'm sure you will see an improvement.

Peace

Jeff Marchand

pollinator

Posts: 280

Location: Eastern Ontario

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posted 1 year ago

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Interesting about calendula, what is it good for medicinally?

Do, there is no try --- Yoda
No one is interested in something you didn't do--- Gord Downie

Deane Adams

Posts: 679

235

posted 1 year ago

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Jeff, I made a prep that we called "healing balm" using equal measures of arnica, calendula and thyme, infused in oil, (I did this based on moon sign lore, from one new moon to the next) then prepared a salve/ointment, adding one ounce of bees wax per cup of infused oil.

A friend's young son called it boo-boo salve! It seemed to work well on most minor boo-boo's and helped to reduce bruising. Not to be used on open wounds!!!

One could also just use the infused oil, apply by drops and rub into the skin.

Hope this may prove to of help.

Peace

PS when or if you order calendula flowers, you will get the whole flower head, it is the petals that have the magic in them, But the whole heads will work also.

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