Phyllophaga spp.

Coleoptera: Scarabaeidae

Identification
• Larvae are white, C-shaped, and up to 1¹/₂" long.
• Adult May/June beetles are brown to reddish-brown.

Damage
• Larvae eat holes in the roots of potato, carrot, and other root vegetables.
• Larvae eat roots of various other vegetables and flowers, rarely causing damage worthy of control.
• Adults feed on tree foliage.

Management
• Avoid planting root crops in new gardens where grass was growing in the past three years.
• Maintain gardens free of grassy weeds.
• Insecticides applied to the soil are effective.

Other Information
• Adults are strongly attracted to lights at night.
• Life cycles last up to four years, with three-year life cycles common.
• Adults emerge from pupae in the summer, but stay in the soil and emerge the following spring.