Bugs

[Russell]

i am in central texas. I planted some sunflowers last weekend. I checked them a couple of days ago and saw these bugs on them. I cant figure out what kind of bugs they and if they are bad. Any ideas?

 

[marlingardener]

Russell, welcome to the forum from a fellow Texas gardener! The bug seems to be a beetle, but I don't know which. Watch your sunflowers for any sign of damage, and if there is, pick the bugs off. If they are beetles, the hard shell makes them almost impervious to insecticides except systemics.

 

[Russell]

Thank you! I've never seen anything like these. They look red. I was wondering if they might be baby june bugs? I've had june bugs flying around the past few nights. Well, before the front hit.

 

[Chuck]

I can't tell from the pics but do these things have 6 legs or a bunch of legs like a pill bug? If they have 6 legs, are soft and have a long snout they are probably stink bug larvae. They usually come in two colors, either reddish or yellowish and are easy to control with spinosad.

 

[remnant]

Once sunflowers are established, they are susceptible to a number of bugs. These are either Helicoverpa or Rutherglen bugs. They can't be beetles in my opinion because those which attack the sunflower are Scarab beetles. They feed on the taproots and hide in the soil. They emerge late in the afternoon to feed.

 

[Russell]

I think that they have 6 legs. I went out there today, but I didn't see any, so I couldn't get any better pics. I don't know if they are soft...I didn't touch them.

remnant, I looked at both Helicoverpa and Rutherglen and these don't look like them. They look much closer to scarab beetles, which also look like june bugs to me. I hope that june bugs don't attack sunflowers....we get TONS of them here.

 

[Chuck]

I think that they have 6 legs. I went out there today, but I didn't see any, so I couldn't get any better pics. I don't know if they are soft...I didn't touch them.

remnant, I looked at both Helicoverpa and Rutherglen and these don't look like them. They look much closer to scarab beetles, which also look like june bugs to me. I hope that june bugs don't attack sunflowers....we get TONS of them here.

The bugs we call June bugs here in Texas are different than what other folks call June bugs. Ours are solid shiny brown in color and do look a lot like scarab beetles. Our June bugs don't eat plants (or at least I have never seen them eating on plants) but do their damage by laying eggs in the soil and the eggs turn into those white grub worms with a reddish brown head that eat the roots of lawn grass and garden plants.

 

[Russell]

Here is a better pic from today.

 

[Willowstar]

Hi... Thrre is something eating the leaves of my kale and green beans. I'm thinking it could be grasshoppers as it makes holes in the leaves. Could they be active at night because I dont see any insects on the leaves during the day?

 

[Chuck]

Hi... Thrre is something eating the leaves of my kale and green beans. I'm thinking it could be grasshoppers as it makes holes in the leaves. Could they be active at night because I dont see any insects on the leaves during the day?

Have you checked for cabbage loopers on the kale? Grasshoppers normally like to eat on the edge of the leaves first