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Don’t let these beetles eat Oregon!

Return your permission postcard or go to the website NOW to protect everyone’s plants!

If you’re new to the area or to the Cedar Mill News, you may not have heard that we are ground zero for a very serious infestation of a horrible pest—the Japanese beetle. They have devastated crops and destroyed gardens in the eastern and southern US. So far, they’ve been kept in check in Oregon, where they have the potential to disrupt whole segments of our agricultural industries, to say nothing of the havoc they can wreak in home gardens.

It’s entirely up to us to help Oregon Department of Agriculture protect the state. ODA is seeking your permission to sprinkle a larvicide on the grass in everyone’s yard within the affected area. Acelepryn is a granular insecticide that will kill the larvae that hatch from eggs laid this summer. It was applied last Spring, but because of the beetle’s life cycle, it didn’t prevent the hatching of the beetles whose eggs were laid the summer before. By the end of summer 2017, ODA had trapped more than 23,000 beetles.

The beetles hatch in mid-summer, and lay their eggs in the late summer in irrigated turf—lawns. Most of the eggs those beetles laid will be affected by last year’s Acelepryn application, but it only takes a few beetles to start the cycle over again.

This is a five-year project, and this is year two. Even if you gave permission last year, you need to do so again. Also, based on last summer’s trapping, some additional area has been added to the project. Treatment is scheduled for April and May 2018.

According to Chris Hedstrom of ODA, “We're entering the final weeks of gathering consent forms from residents for our Japanese beetle eradication program. As of today, we’ve received consent from 4,613 residents allowing ODA to treat their property. While this is an amazing show of support and cooperation from the communities involved, we still have not heard from over 1000 residences in our proposed treatment area, despite three mailings, and notices delivered directly to front doors.”

Many of us try to garden without pesticides, but if these beetles are allowed to take hold here, our nurseries, vineyards, and other agricultural industries will be forced to apply vastly more chemicals if they are to continue. And you will too, if you like your roses, blueberries, grapes, apples, and more.

Visit the website for more information and to submit your permission. And show your support for the effort by picking up a lawn sign from the Cedar Mill News office! (Call or text 503-803-1813 to make sure we have them available.)

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