Flea beetles can be very destructive to a wide variety of plants, so be sure to take preventative measures.
Learn How to Prevent These Garden Pests!
How to Identify Flea Beetles on Plants
Given that there are so many species of flea beetles, they vary in appearance quite a bit. Colors range from black to tan, with other, brighter colors mixed in, and the beetles may have a solid, striped, or spotted pattern, depending on the species.
To identify flea beetles, it鈥檚 easier to look for signs of their damage (described below) than for the beetles themselves. At only 1/16 of an inch in length, flea beetles are very tiny and will quickly spring away鈥攍ike fleas鈥攊f they see you approach!
When Do Flea Beetles Appear?
Adult flea beetles overwinter in brush and wooded areas. Adult bugs pose the biggest threat early in the planting season as they are emerging, typically when outdoor temperatures reach 50潞F (10掳C). At this time, seedlings are being planted, too, and they are most susceptible to beetle damage.
Eggs are laid at the base of plant stems in early summer after the spring feeding period, and larvae feed at the roots.
What Flea Beetle Damage Looks Like
Adult beetles feed on foliage, producing 鈥渟hotholes鈥 in the leaves. Look out for these holes, especially on young seedlings, where damage is most rapid and will cause the most harm. The holes they make will be round and can quickly ruin leafy greens. New leaves are usually damaged first and will have a lacy appearance.
Flea beetles usually don鈥檛 cause fatal damage to established plants because the leaves are already large enough to survive a few holes. The real danger is that the beetles can spread bacterial diseases, such as wilt and blight, from plant to plant. Additionally, in leafy crops like lettuce or spinach, the holes can bring down the quality of the leaves. Therefore, they are still important to consider as pests.
Catherine Boeckmann
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I noticed flea beetles several weeks ago. Treated with the alcohol spray mentioned above and then about a week later, the plants I sprayed showed leaf damage (looked like I'd burnt the leaves). I stopped using it immediately. After researching a bit more, I think if I could do it over, I'd spray only after 5PM to be sure to protect sprayed leaves from sun. Anyway, plants seemed to recover well, but this week I've noticed sections of my otherwise healthy looking potato plants start to wilt (not the whole thing, just one wilty stem coming directly from ground on each plant). Only pest I'm really seeing a lot of at this point is flea beetles and I have lots of tiny little holes on leaves. But plants still have been full, and nice and green for the most part. I was just hoping the flea beetle issue wouldn't prove too harmful. Now I'm wondering if my wilting problem might be due to their larva. Is this possible? If so, what's the best way to get rid of the larva fast? I've read about diatomaceous earth but can't find it locally. Is there any home remedy?
You can find diatomaceous earth at pool and spa stores. It is used in some filtering systems. It is much cheaper at these stores than at organic supply, of gardening supply stores.
Please be sure any diatomaceous earth you use on your garden is food safe. The DE sold at pool stores is NOT food safe and not safe to eat. Also remember to read the label of any DE insecticide because most contain additional ingredients that are poisonous to humans and animals. Only food grade DE is safe to eat. Also be sure to use a mask when dusting because it can cause respiration problems if inhaled.
A good organic solution is to apply nematodes to your garden soil. The nematodes will kill any flea beetle larvae present in the soil. Neem oil spray is recommended to spry on leaves of plants. Sticky tape placed between the rows of potatoes will catch adult flea beetles.
Sticky tape outdoors is a danger to small animals and birds.
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Do these things bite humans? I have some sort of bug in my garden 1-2 mm in size which looks similar to this, I find them in groups on my jeans when I've been gardening and although I can catch them (they're not too fast) they do jump as well. They're driving me insane and making me itch.
We have not heard of flea beetles biting humans. They are not the same as fleas, which can bite humans. If you have a dog outdoors, or some other mammal frequenting your yard (wild or domestic), it is possible that these are fleas. The size is about right. Flea bites can make you itch, and leave a red bump on your skin. Fleas can jump very high. It is possible, though, that the pests in your garden are another insect. If you can catch one, you might show it to a vet (if you think it is a flea) or a pest control specialist.
I have a site about fleas that arose from my experience in trying to buy flea medication for my dogs. One thing led to another and voila...I have a website.
So, I was doing a google search to get some story ideas for future articles and came across this site about flea beetles...which I had never heard of. Interestingly enough, I am learning that a lot of critters that aren't fleas have flea in their name. Kind of funny.
One example is the sand flea. I plan on adding sections about the sand flea and the flea beetle to my site. Thank you for providing such a wonderful and concise source of information about these guys.
Joe
Flea Bites 101
Neem oil will get rid of them and it's organic approved. I spray once a week in spring or they ruin my arugula and bok choy.
