Rose bush bug?
I was hoping you might be able to I.D. this bug for me … it appears to be some type of beetle. It appears on my rose bush in late May and stays pretty much to this one bush till it sucks the flowers dry ( dosn’t seem interested in the leaves .. just flower buds/ peddles ect. ) I have rarly seen it on my other roses ( Florabundas and Grandafloras, and a few Hybrid Tea’s … I have however seen them on my snow ball bush once . Once it destroys the flowers on the bush it just disappears till the next year . Do these bugs hatch from the ground ?? If so would planting garlic or chives help to discourage them ?
Thanks for any info you can give me!
Denise Dafoe
Tweed , Ontario , Canada
Hi Denise,
You have an infestation of Rose Chafer Beetles, Macrodactylus subspinosus. According to BugGuide: “Adults contain cantharadin, can poison chickens, other birds. ” Rose Chafers have a habit of mating and eating at the same time.