Milky spore disease is especially effective on the grubs of the Japanese beetle. If your main concern is the white grubs of the so-called June beetle, beneficial nematodes are more effective for this purpose.

if I am not sure which beetle is eating me alive, can I use both?

Japanese beetles are an irresdescent blue green and are very destructive. June beetles are brown and do virtually no damage as adults. In answer to your question, not really. Since you are in zone 6 which is several hundred miles north of me, you probably live in a JB area. They don't like the heat in zone 8 Texas.

my weeping cherry got the hell beat out of the leaves last year and I saw lots of the irridescent green bastards (sorry, but i hate em) all over it. also hit my dogwoods pretty hard.

so if JB dont do much damage, I am going to go with the milky spore and see what happens. i will apply when the forsythia's bloom. is that right?

steve

By JB, I meant Jaspanese beetles. They are the ones that are doing all the damage to your plants. I understand there is also a variety of traps available for the adults. The suckers fly so if your neighbors aren't doing any thing you have an up hill battle.

There are green June beetles, quite a bit larger than Japanese beetles. The Japanese beetles (see attached link for an image) have lots of reddish in them.

I'm afraid to tell you, Steve, that JB (Japanese beetle) adults will enter your yard from a long way, just to have at your ornamental cherry. They have favorite foods, and you've discovered one of them.

JB beetle control using Milky Spore or nematodes is not going to protect your trees. If you convince your whole neighborhood to do the same thing, then you might have a solution to your problem.

Thanks everyone. I actually live in a fairly rural part of NY. I dont have any neighbors close by, and my lawn is isolated and surrounded by woods. is that better or worse?
So short of drenching the tree and surrounding lawn in some crazy toxic chemical, what do i do?

IF you are certain that you have Japanese Beetles, and that they are reproducing heavily in your lawn (they prefer lawns rather than shaded woodlands areas) then it might be worth it to inoculant your turfgrass area with the milky spore.

Hello Folks, I have had a MOLE Problem off and on, Mostly ON for the Past 28 Years. I use GRUB-X, but it only lasts a year, two at best. I am looking for a permanent cure, or a least something Good for a Number of years. I am in Lower MIchigan on 3/4 Acre. HELP ... THESE RODENTS ARE DRIVING ME CRAZY !! Any and all information / suggestions are Welcome. Thanks, Jim

nitrojc, not trying to be unsympathetic to your issue, but people are reading this thread to find out about beneficial nematodes versus milky spore. Your question might be related, but you will get better help from more readers if you post the question as a new topic called, "Mole problem" or something similar.

just to have at your ornamental cherry

Unfortunately, yes. You have just provided a nice lunch, dinner, etc.

I stopped putting out JB traps (at the front edge well, well away from the gardens) when my rear neighbor put in ornamental cherries.

I didn't need them any longer--those cherries are doing a better job of attracting them.

Prior to that, I put down Milky Spore (semi-rural PA here). It's a bit slow to build up, but once it does no self-respecting beetle will survive in the lawn or gardens.

I haven't used the nematodes as my problem was never extreme, but I hear good things about them. They'll go for the grubs and happily reproduce in the corpse. I don't hear that they'll do anything for the adults, though.

After reading through the feedback from people on this website, it appears that Milky Spore is probably a better method of controlling grubs than beneficial nematodes. In addition to grubs, I am also trying to control a developing problem with Sod Webworms. Does anyone agree that the most cost effective way to deal with both problems is to use Guardian Lawn Patrol Mix, which contains nematodes that target grubs as well as sod webworms? If you disagree and think I should use Milky Spore for the grubs, what do you suggest for the Sod Webworms?

Thanks for any comments.