I feel your pain. I put down milky spore last year. But I'm told it doesn't work that well here in zone 5. I would use insect screen around the plants. With something that supports it. filix.

The problem is I need the raspberries to be pollinated! Have you tried spraying soapy water? Will this affect bees too?

Pure, cold-pressed neem oil is a powerful anti-feedant and more. Read this:

Neem Extract as an Insecticidecolor>size>

In India mainly, but also Asia and Africa, grows a tree all plant enthusiasts should be aware of, Azadirachta indica, commonly known as the "neem" tree, and a relative of mahogany. Extracts from the trees seeds contain azadirachtin, a relatively safe and effective naturally occurring organic insecticide. Let me preface the comments following, by reminding you that the terms "naturally occurring and/or organic" do not universally mean safe. Pyrethrums, rotenone, and even the very dangerous nicotine are all organic insecticides that should be handled with great caution. Neem extracts, on the other hand are very safely used in a wide variety of cosmetics, as a topical treatment for minor wounds, as an insecticide in grain storage containers, bins, and bags, and a whole host of other applications. Neem is very safe for use around birds & mammals. I'll limit this discussion to its use as an insecticide.

Neem works in many ways. It is effective both in topical and a systemic applications. It is an anti-feedant, an oviposition deterrent (anti-egg laying), a growth inhibitor, a mating disrupter, and a chemosterilizer. Azadirachtin, a tetranortriterpenoid compound, closely mimics the hormone ecdysone, which is necessary for reproduction in insects. When present, it takes the place of the real hormone and thus disrupts not only the feeding process, but the metamorphic transition as well, disrupting molting. It interferes with the formation of chitin (insect "skin") and stops pupation in larvae, thus short-circuiting the insect life cycle. It also inhibits flight ability, helping stop insect spread geographically

Tests have shown that azadirachtin is effective in some cases at concentrations as low as 1 ppm, but some producers use alcohol in the extraction of neem oil from plant parts which causes the azadirachtin to be removed from the oil. Some products touting neem oil as an ingredient actually have no measurable amounts of azadiractin. I use what is referred to either as cold pressed or virgin neem oil. You may also occasionally find it referred to as "raw" neem or "crude" neem oil.

Neem oil is most often used in an aqueous (water) suspension as a foliar spray or soil drench. Commonly, it is diluted to about a .5 to 2% solution, but the suggested ratio for use in container plant culture is 1 tsp. per quart of warm water. A drop or two of dish soap (castile or olive oil soap is best) helps keep the oil emulsified. The mixture is then applied as a mist to all leaf and bark surfaces and as a soil drench to the tree's root system. It should not be applied as a foliar spray on hot days or in bright sun as leaf burn may occur. Remember to agitate the container frequently as you apply and do not mix anymore than you will use in one day. Neem breaks down rapidly in water and/ or sunlight.

Some users of insecticides feel the need to observe the instant results of their efforts in order to be convinced of the effectiveness of what they are using. The application of neem derivatives does not provide this immediate gratification. There is virtually no knockdown (instant death) factor associated with its use. Insects ingesting or contacting neem usually take about 3 - 14 days to die. Its greatest benefit; however, is in preventing the occurrence of future generations. It is also interesting to note that in studies it was found that when doses were given, purposefully insufficient to cause death or complete disruption of the metamorphic cycle, up to 30 surviving generations showed virtually no resistance/ immunity to normal lethal doses, so it appears that insects build no Âresistance to azadiractin.

I have been using neem oil for five years as both a preventative and fixative and have had no insect problems on my container plants. Applications of cold-pressed neem oil are most effective for use on mites, whitefly, aphids, thrips, fungus gnats, caterpillars, beetles, mealy bugs, leaf miners, g-moth, and others. It seems to be fairly specific in attacking insects with piercing or rasping mouth parts. Since these are the pests that feed on plant tissues, they are our main target species. Unless beneficial like spiders, lady beetles, certain wasps, etc., come in direct contact with spray, it does little to diminish their numbers.

Neem oil does have an odor that might be described as similar to that of an old onion, so you may wish to test it first, if you intend to use it indoors. I've found the odor dissipates in a day or two. As always, read and follow label instructions carefully.

Neem oil can be purchased from many net or local sources. My favorite brand is Dyna-Gro, pure, cold-pressed neem oil. If you have trouble locating a source, you can contact me via the forum or directly.

Al

what exactly does JBs do? Right now, I have a bunch of them flying aimlessly around in my backyard but I am not seeing any damages on plants. Been that way for 3 years. They are very annoying though. They just fly into my head sometimes. I wish I had my racquetball racket that I had back in college to take a swat at those pests.

They make lace of your plant's leaves - overnight in many cases.

Al

Hey Lou in Midlothian, TX stop swatting your Japenese beetles up to Dallas. They are making lace of my Watermelon plant.

:-) LC

Today Neem - Tomorrow my special brew . . .

Garlic, Onion, Cayenne, a bit of Palmolive, and some Jalenpeno - swirl in my food processor with hot water, stewed overnight and tomorrow morning before dawn strain the brew - pour the liquid into a spray bottle - careful since it will be quite hot and then . . .(REVENGE with a spray bottle).

Hopefully, it will make my cucumber beetles find someone else's container garden and if that does not work. I am going to containerize them and swat them back to Midlothian. :-)

I did use something that worked. Only, I used it on hibiscus on our deck.

Crush up some garlic and add a few drops of soap, and add water. Spray every leaf on the plant. Just make sure to use plenty of garlic!

This worked really great. It was just smelly to sit on the deck! Should work great for your raspberries, so long as they're not on your deck/patio!

We just pick them off by hand and put them in sopay water. They run from about June 20 to July 20 here and at peak we can pick off 250 a day. They did hit our container okra this year pretty hard and our chile peppers to a far lesser extent. Hand picking will contain most of the damage if you are around to check your plants every 2 hours or so.

They are big fans of pole bean leaves and grape leaves. Fortunately for me, this year they found the extra vigorous grape vines and feasted on those with a heavy hit, but there were so many grape leaves, they couldn't possibly eat every last bit of them. My raspberries are right next to my grapes. The Japanese Beetles favored the grape leaves like 10 to 1, so maybe grow some grapes as a decoy for your raspberries.

In my yard they prefer the raspberry leaves to the grape leaves ;) Go figure. Stupid beetles.

I also started hundreds of Marigolds of whatever mix from seed this year and they love the yellow ones and ignore all the others.

They are just odd critters.

I have some basil planted near my walk, about 15' from where my scarlet runners are. I've recently had a bunch of JB's devouring my basil, and I just knock them into soapy water as I can, because they haven't discovered my beans yet, which they decimated last year. So, basil seems to be a good trap crop for them also. They haven't touched my peppers or tomatoes, which are next to the basil.

Lol. Ok. As long as it is not Asian Longhorned Beetle, I can tolerate JBs for now since I can't find noticable damages on my plants from them.