Re: Geraniums Could Help Control Japanese Beetle

**S* W* <g*@gmail.com>**

Do they mean Geranium or Pelargonium?

Sally

On Mon, Mar 8, 2010 at 5:17 PM, Molly Day <mollyday1@gmail.com> wrote:

> well, THAT's interesting
>
>
>
> On Mon, Mar 8, 2010 at 4:08 PM, Doreen Howard <gardendiva@charter.net
> >wrote:
>
> > This is from the USDA March 2010 issue of Agricultural Research magazine.
> > Interesting information for gardeners.
> >
> > STORY LEAD:
> > Geraniums Could Help Control Devastating Japanese Beetle
> > ___________________________________________
> >
> > Geraniums may hold the key to controlling the devastating Japanese
> beetle,
> > which feeds on nearly 300 plant species and costs the ornamental plant
> > industry $450 million in damage each year, according to scientists with
> the
> > Agricultural Research Service (ARS).
> >
> > The beetle, Popillia japonica Newman, can feast on a wide variety of
> > plants,
> > including ornamentals, soybean, maize, fruits and vegetables. But within
> 30
> > minutes of consuming geranium petals, the beetle rolls over on its back,
> > its
> > legs and antennae slowly twitch, and it remains paralyzed for several
> > hours.
> > The beetles typically recover within 24 hours when paralyzed under
> > laboratory conditions, but they often succumb to death under field
> > conditions after predators spot and devour the beetles while they are
> > helpless.
> >
> > ARS entomologist Chris Ranger at the agency's Application Technology
> > Research Unit in Wooster, Ohio, is working on developing a way to use
> > geraniums to control the beetles.
> >
> > Ohio and neighboring Michigan are some of the largest producers of
> > horticultural plants, most of them grown in greenhouses. Other research
> to
> > benefit the horticultural industry includes that of Susan Stieve, curator
> > of
> > Ohio State University's Ornamental Plant Germplasm Center in Columbus,
> > Ohio.
> >
> > Stieve is working with OSU collaborators and horticulturist Jonathan
> Frantz
> > of the ARS Greenhouse Production Research Group in Toledo, Ohio, to see
> > whether a specialized breed of begonias can tolerate colder temperatures.
> >
> > The scientists are screening the begonias at two production temperatures:
> 5
> > degrees Fahrenheit colder than normal, and 10 degrees F colder than
> normal.
> > Begonias are found naturally in a wide variety of climates and
> > altitudes--ecological clues that can be used to identify promising
> > germplasm. Being able to grow begonias at cooler temperatures could
> reduce
> > greenhouse heating bills for ornamental growers in northern climates.
> >
> > Read more about this research in the March 2010 issue of Agricultural
> > Research magazine.
> > http://www.ars.usda.gov/is/AR/archive/mar10/garden0310.htm
> >
> > ARS is U.S. Department of Agriculture's principal intramural scientific
> > research agency.
> > ___________________________________________
> >
> > USDA is an equal opportunity provider, employer and lender.  To file a
> > complaint of discrimination, write:  USDA, Director, Office of Civil
> > Rights,
> > 1400 Independence Ave., S.W., Washington, D.C. 20250-9410 or call (800)
> > 795-3272 (voice), or (202) 720-6382 (TDD).
> > ___________________________________________
> >
> >
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-- 
"First a howling blizzard woke us, Then the rain came down to soak us, And
now before the eye can focus -- Crocus."
       -- Lilja Rogers, New Hampshire poet, 1901-1998
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