It is the only species in the genus Plectrodera. can help control the larvae, and insecticides like Permethrin SFR can be used to prevent the adults from laying eggs. My comment to Sara, for the homeowner, was: I think it is cottonwood. Cottonwood Borer. Under the right conditions, cottonwood trees are some of the best shade-providing trees in large areas. Cottonwood Leaf Beetle. If you spray too early or too late, the pesticide will not reach the leaf miner larva and will not kill the leaf miner flies. Leaf Beetles. But the attached sheet below has some suggestions for controlling. The larvae eat the tender insides of the leaves, while the adults eat the outer edges. Cottonwood Tree Uses. Treat the tree with organic neem oil to get rid of this beetle. They prefer cottonwood… In heavy infestations tender terminals may be defoliated. Suckers from nearby cottonwood tree Cottonwood tree suckers removed from lawn Closeup of cottonwood tree suckers removed from lawn. Larvae skeletonize leaves between the leaf veins. Lacewing larvae, assassin bugs, and certain beetles also are common predators. Cottonwood leaf beetles are approximately 1/4 inch long and are pale yellow with black stripes. Sprouts develop from the roots. Adult feeding causes irregular shot holes. Saturating the the soil at the tree’s base with insecticide is also recommended to kill the grubs still burrowing there. Cottonwood leaf beetle adults and larva. These natural enemies often help to keep leafrollers at low, nondamaging levels, but even if natural enemies are present, large outbreaks of leafrollers occasionally occur. If so, I think it is a Cottonwood Leaf Beetle larvae. The larvae is more destructive than the adult, so you may not need to do anything if there are only a few. Although several beetle species like to feed on willow foliage, the cottonwood leaf beetle (Chrysomela scripta) usually causes the worst damage. Larvae and adults feed on willow and poplar, with cottonwood being the most preferred. The larvae are black and have white spots. Cottonwood Borer, (Plectrodera scalator Fabricius) is found in the eastern US, New York. Adult beetles can be found on and around host plants during the summer. This is characteristic of cottonwood in an area where a cottonwood tree has been cut down. Answer: Applying insecticidal soaps like Bonide Insecticidal soap. Now there are trees sprouting alllllll over the yard. The cottonwood borer (Plectrodera scalator) is a species of longhorn beetle found in the United States east of the Rocky Mountains that feeds on cottonwood trees. Aphids, leaf beetles, canker fungus, fungal leaf spots, and root rot are just some of the problems these trees have. It is one of the largest insects in North America, with lengths reaching 40 millimetres (1.6 in) and widths, 12 mm (0.47 in). I am ready to start over and till the yard up and replant. I recently removed a cottonwood tree. Treatment is rarely necessary. In each case, the leaf damage appeared to be caused by an invasive insect called the viburnum leaf beetle, Pyrrhalta viburni. I have tried mowing and pulling them, but there are tooo many. It feeds on the foliage and has the ability to strip the tree bare if you don’t intervene. The cottonwood leaf beetle feeds primarily on cottonwood, but will attack other species of poplar and willows. Birds sometimes feed on the larvae and pupae, although they usually prefer other insects. The trick to this method of how to kill leaf miners is to spray at right time. Cottonwood leaf beetle: these small pests hibernate under the bark of the young cottonwood tree in the winter and come out in the spring. Some suggestions for controlling the summer laying eggs is a cottonwood leaf beetle ( Chrysomela scripta usually! Soil at the tree’s base with insecticide is also recommended to kill the grubs still burrowing there the up. 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