[lazza]

Our herb garden seems to have become infested with these rather striking looking bugs, and I am not sure if I need to get rid of them....! They are all over the rosemary, and there are few on the sage. And yesterday, I found one on an apple tree, too.

Anyone any ideas what they are, and if they are a pest? Could they be rainbow beetle? This seems the closest I can find, but what I have read suggests they are only found down south, and the photos I have seen look much more multicoloured. In size and shape, they are like ladybirds, so if they could possibly be good for my plants by eating greenfly, I'll not do anything about them, but if they are likely to eat the plants instead, they'll have to go, despite their colourfulness!

[JayG]

I think the fact that they're on your rosemary is the clue (plus their striking appearance!)

http://www.rhs.org.uk/advice/profile?PID=555

Edit: just re-read your post properly and realised you're not down south, so you're very unlucky (and have now got me worried!) 

[lazza]

Aha! Rosemary beetle! That makes sense!! 

Just logged my sightings on the RHS reporting page. It seems they have spread north pretty quickly. Time to go an do some beetle squashing!

[JayG]

After seeing the damage Lily beetles had done to a friend's lilies recently, I had a glance at my surviving oriental lilies (one got dug up and eaten by a squirrel last winter  ).

Sure enough, one bright red beetle, first I've ever seen (I tried to squash it but it was tougher than I thought and I dropped the darn thing!  )

Will have to have a peer more closely at my rosemary bushes too I suppose, although at a glance they are their usual rampant selves!

I'm at last beginning to understand the meaning of the word 'globalisation'.   

[WhiteWolf]

and it's covered in bling 

WW 

[lazza]

Well, 20 minutes spent de-beetling just one rosemary bush last night resulted in this little lot.... (spot the lily beetle that sneaked in there too....!)

And anotehr 20-30 taken off today.... 

[JayG]

Well done - certainly not likely to be confused with any other beetle are they?! 

Do they have any unusual habits (like jumping off as soon as they see you) or do they crawl all over the bush minding their own business until you pick them up?

[lazza]

Well done - certainly not likely to be confused with any other beetle are they?! 

Do they have any unusual habits (like jumping off as soon as they see you) or do they crawl all over the bush minding their own business until you pick them up?

They aren't that easy to get off, as they sit right in the joint of the rosemary sprigs. They also tend to climb to the back of the twig when you get near, to hide, I guess! And they certainly do exactly as I read - when they fall off the plant, they land on their backs, as their undersides are dark and they are then very hard to see on the soil.

I suspect this will be a twice daily activity for the next week or two until I have them all!

[surbie100]

AHA! I have been wondering what these are. A road near me has a huge lavender hedge (about 30m long) and it's covered in these things.

[Beetroot Queen]

They are rather pretty though, well done on getting them. I will check mine I think  goggles on.

Asparagus beetle gets me, I cant catch the pests. Spraying for me. 

[Mrs Bee]

Well done for  nabbing that lot. Rosemary beetles can strip a rosemary bush. I had loads of them a couple of years ago and I got  a mustard jar full of the blasted things, but not before they went through half of my rosemary bushes.

And as for the dreaded lily beetles.   They are sneaky little bar stewards.

You have to be sooooo careful when picking them off the lilies. If they fall, they fall upside down and you can't find them.

I have been picking them off the lilies since March and they have still got some of my lilies.
Some of them in copulating pairs; right little copulators.

  Next year tho', I'll have them.

[polly nator]

Found this thread really interesting as a Rosemary Rainbow Beetle appeared out of nowhere in my garden in York  about ten days ago. Little grandson found it. They really are very very pretty. Another one appeared yesterday. They prefer the lavender at mine despite having a couple of huge rosemary bushes.  They must have hired a coach to come up north for their holidays this year

[lazza]

I'm still squishing.... but I'm down to 5-10 beetles a day! Probably up to a couple of hundred beetles in total so far 

[Mrs Bee]

Keep squishing, you'll get there.