Japanese beetles and four o'clocks

Elgin, IL(Zone 5a)

I went out into my yard yesterday to check for japanese beetles. I have 23 roses, and they tend to target certain ones. I deliberately grew lots of four o'clocks (mirabilis jalapa) this year.

I was checking a rose they usually prefer and saw one. I checked a rose they go into ecstacies over and there were none. I went around the yard and there were none on any of the other roses. Then I looked at my pink (really, pinky lavender) four o'clocks. There must have been 15 on a single plant. That plant is within three feet of their "favorite" rose. They were chomping the leaves of the mirabilis to bits. I dispatched them and cut off the damaged leaves.

I don't know whether the plants thenselves are toxic. I just know that they were within ten feet of 11 different roses, and they chose the mirabilis instead. Hey, good trade - works for me!

Donna

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