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Beetles in the lawn

cliffharveycliffharvey Posts: 3
in Problem solving
We've inherited a lawn and around 10am we get dozens,  possibly hundreds,  of beetles flying low and disappearing into the grass for a few seconds. By midday they've all gone. 
They are about 14mm long with brown wing cases and green heads,  both colours are shiny.
Doing a bit of Googling suggests they could be a cockchafe but the colours are wrong. Whatever they are I think they may be laying eggs. 
So how do I stop them appearing and break the cycle?

Posts

  • Blue OnionBlue Onion Posts: 2,995
    Japanese beetle?  
    Utah, USA.
  • FireFire Posts: 19,096
    Are they a problem?
  • Blue OnionBlue Onion Posts: 2,995
    Ahh.. chafer beetles are Japanese beetles.  http://www.pleveys.co.uk/shop/chafer-beetle-larvae-control-10sqm-coverage/  Is that the guy?
    Utah, USA.
  • cliffharveycliffharvey Posts: 3
    Well,  that is the little critter. My wife won't hang the washing so that is a problem in itself 
    There are a few dead patches of grass and but nothing too serious. 
    The treatment in the link is not cheap, it would cost me a couple of hundred to do all the lawn though. 
    Are they just a problem this time of yea do you think,  perhaps we could live with them for a short time. 

  • cliffharveycliffharvey Posts: 3
    This is odd,  the link above costs £12.99 and treats 10 some, but this product from the same company http://www.pleveys.co.uk/shop/chafer-beetle-control-100sqm/ treats 100sqm for £30!
    That's more like it but which one is the typo? 
  • JellyfireJellyfire Posts: 1,139
    Hard to tell the size but if they are quite large them they’re cockchafers, otherwise known as Maybugs. As to how long they’ll be there, the clue is in the name so I wouldn’t worry. The larvae live underground and won’t do any harm to the lawn 
  • DovefromaboveDovefromabove Posts: 88,147
    Jellyfire said:
    Hard to tell the size but if they are quite large them they’re cockchafers, otherwise known as Maybugs. As to how long they’ll be there, the clue is in the name so I wouldn’t worry. The larvae live underground and won’t do any harm to the lawn 
    They won't do any harm to people either, so no problem with hanging washing out.

    They usually fly about in the evenings in May and June, attracted by the perfume of honeysuckles and other plants that smell sweet in the evening.

    Cockchafers are extremely handsome creatures ... we love watching them. 

    Gardening in Central Norfolk on improved gritty moraine over chalk ... free-draining.





  • wild edgeswild edges Posts: 10,497
    There are a few different kinds of chafer beetle. The most common are the cockchafers but there are also summer chafers which are similar to cockchafers but have a brown head (excuse the lewd picture)  :blush:


    you seem to have the smaller garden chafer though looking at the green head


    there are also rose chafers which are completely green and look like jewels and ghost chafers which are one of the whitest creatures in nature. Sadly I don't get either here so no pics I'm afraid.
    If you can keep your head, while those around you are losing theirs, you may not have grasped the seriousness of the situation.
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