Asparagus beetles
Crioceris duodecimpunctata=red; Crioceris asparagi=blue
These blue and red beetles lay their eggs on bushes. Its larvae chew at the bushes, causing their stems to turn brown and produce a lower yield in the following year. The damage occurs primarily in the first and second year of harvest. The disease usually begins with an attack on several plants and, then, spreads quickly into other plants.
Asparagus aphid
Platyparea poeciloptera
This dark-coloured fly with light-coloured dots on its wings may be easily noticed in an asparagus field. It is active from late April to early July and produces only one generation within a year. It lays its eggs on the tops of young stems. The larvae chew out holes in the stems, near the ground, and undergo metamorphosis inside them. As a result, the infected stems grow twisted and die prematurely. Aphids are at their most active during hot weather. The risk of infection is reduced through, in addition to the use of insecticides, the removal of bushes for the winter period.
Delia Platura
Delia Platura lays its eggs inside stems during harvest. The larvae chew out holes in the stems, making them inedible. In some years the plants are infected with the insects, in other years they are not.
