They aren't always harmless to roses. @Nollie on the rose thread has an invasion and they have eaten into his roses and wrecked them. They are now starting on mine. I touched a fat bud and pollen beetles had nibbled around the bottom of it looking for a short cut and the bud fell off.
Dordogne and Norfolk. Clay in Dordogne, sandy in Norfolk.
It’s why some farmers use neonicotinoids on their rapeseed fields … but then we wonder why the swifts and swallows are declining in number … there’s no food for them … birds need insects in order to live.
Gardening in Central Norfolk on improved gritty moraine over chalk ... free-draining.
I've looked at yours @Papi Jo, they aren't pollen beetles. These are pollen beetles.
I wish the birds would eat mine @Dovefromabove! I expect the farmers feel they have to make a living and people need to eat too. However I'm not really in favour of pesticides and I don't use them, I just curse!
Dordogne and Norfolk. Clay in Dordogne, sandy in Norfolk.
I don't think so, they're all the same, there are aphids on the tree but they are different to the ones I have taken photos of, they seem to be marching round the edge of the pot, not typical aphid behaviour. They've got me foxed!
Sorry wild edges, I take it back, you're probably right. I think there are blackfly and the ones in the photos. I've moved the tree so that it's next to the bird feeder, fingers crossed they disappear soon. Thanks everyone, much appreciated.
I would never spray anything in my garden. I might squish a few aphids off tender new growth but that’s about it. But yes I’ve had a huge swarm of pollen beetles of biblical proportions that has been very destructive and decapitated lots of rosebuds. In normal years and normal numbers they are harmless and the odd bit of damage is nothing to worry about.
I do get a bit grumpy when people cite birds as the solution because I have a very healthy bird population here and loads of plants and goodies to attract predators. They never eat any of my pests! There is sufficient food is the surrounding forested valleys and hedgerows, so they completely ignore the feast in my garden.
Mountainous Northern Catalunya, Spain. Hot summers, cold winters.
Posts
Gardening in Central Norfolk on improved gritty moraine over chalk ... free-draining.
I wish the birds would eat mine @Dovefromabove! I expect the farmers feel they have to make a living and people need to eat too. However I'm not really in favour of pesticides and I don't use them, I just curse!
Gardening in Central Norfolk on improved gritty moraine over chalk ... free-draining.
I do get a bit grumpy when people cite birds as the solution because I have a very healthy bird population here and loads of plants and goodies to attract predators. They never eat any of my pests! There is sufficient food is the surrounding forested valleys and hedgerows, so they completely ignore the feast in my garden.