Something turning my cukes/peppers/eggplant leaves in to lace

[obsessed]

I know it is a beetle but I read conflicting reports on what to do about them. I have read that most damage is aesthetic and should be left alone. I also read that damage can be damaging. In my opinonion I think they are damaging my plants. What do you feel?

 

[wifezilla]

Flea beetles turned my radish leaves to shreds and I ended up with no harvest. I did solve the problem by sprinkling DE on the ground by the plants. It disrupts their breeding cycle.

 

[Ridgerunner]

Agree. Sure sounds like flea beetles. Many people seem to think they don't do much damage but unless I treat my eggplant, the leaves turn brown, dry out and crumble away. They don't make much eggplant if they don't have any leaves.

I spray mine with Sevin.

 

[chris09]

Flea Beetles and or Cucumber Beetle...

Chris

 

[journey11]

Are they little tiny black beetles? Sounds like flea beetles to me. They are very determined and will wear out all your leaves quickly and repeatedly! I had to spray them to get them under control. Once I had leaves again, my eggplants started to produce!

Potato beetles will also work on eggplant. I just pull them off by hand and drown them.

 

[Hattie the Hen]

Flea Beetles and or Cucumber Beetle...

Chris

Chris, thank you so much for those links....I found the second one particularly interesting & have filed it.

Personally I tend to keep my brassicas covered from the moment I plant them out. This year I have been expeimenting on two raised beds full of brassicas. One is covered with a lightweight row-cover fleece material & the other with a fine translucent plastic mesh, both cover the entire bed & are firmly anchored to the ground. So far the row-cover fleece is winning hands down with no hloles at all in the leaves while the plastic mesh bed does have a few holes in the plants on the lower sides (the mesh is fastened over metal hoops) so I suspect some insects still get through the mesh where the leaves press against it. So next year I will only use the fleece......good news as it is cheaper & comes in much wider widths.
Another bonus has been that as my chickens & the wild pigeons cannot see the crop they have not pecked at them or dug them up.

Hattie