New Invasive Insect detected in Ada and Kootenai Counties

Boise, ID - A new invasive insect, the Japanese beetle (Popillia japonica), recently was detected in Idaho in both Ada and Kootenai counties. The Japanese beetle was first introduced to the United States in 1916 in plants imported from Japan. The insect is approximately ½-inch long, a shiny metallic green with copper-brown wing covers.

Adult Japanese beetles feed on trees, rose bushes, stonefruits and many garden and field crops leaving holes and skeltonized leaves. The larvae, or grubs, live under the soil surface and destroy patches of turf by feeding on roots of grass.

Cow Camp Chatter:Self-Disciplined Ranch Management

Ron Torell, Long-Standing Educator and Advocate of Agriculture

Why does it take something like a drought or low cattle market to get the attention of those of us in the cow business? It was easy for us to become complacent with $1200 yearlings, $900 calves and $1000 market ready cows.  It seemed as if there would never be another bad day in the industry.  With the cycle now moving in the opposite direction we are thrust in to a situation where forces outside of our control have brought on a downward trend and softer market. How do we deal with it?