Neem Oil for Japanese Beetles

Will neem effectively deter or eradicate Japanese Beetles? I sprayed our young apple and cherry trees as well as my rose bushes. Some of the beetles fell off and became sluggish or appear to have died. Others flew right back up and got back on the plants.

I don't see beetles listed as one of the pests managed by neem, but thought I'd check with the experts! :-)

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Neem Oil for Japanese Beetles

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Japanese Beetle control with neem
by: Birgit

Once Japanese Beetles are swarming, nothing will effectively eradicate them. (The best time to control them is the grub stage. But since the adult beetles can easily fly 5 km, that's also rarely a viable option for home gardeners. Still, you may want to research milky spore disease for future years.)

The best you can do now is minimize the damage. And luckily neem oil is effective here. It does deter feeding and it does reduce the population numbers over time, as explained here:
How does neem insecticide work?

The key is patience. If you thoroughly spray your trees once a week you should get on top of the problem. Unfortunatley you are already a bit late.

Ideally, if you know which trees the beetles love best, try to start a spray program at least a couple of weeks before you expect the beetles to arrive.

It is not necessary to cover each and every plant in neem oil, just the plants the Japanese Beetles like.

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