In late July I put a note in my garden journal reminding “Future Me” to avoid growing ‘Lofty Lady’ marigolds because the Japanese Beetles just decimated them that month. I’ve since changed my mind. Once the beetles starting disappearing later in August and the flowers could open to their full, fluffy size, I was finally able to appreciate the nice burst of color ‘Lofty Lady’ added to the back of my flowerbeds.
The beetles seem to be attracted to large yellow marigolds like ‘Lofty Lady’ more than the orange ones like ‘Garland Orange’. For several weeks the damage was significant.
‘Lofty Lady’ grows 3 to 4 feet tall. I started my plants indoors from seed in mid-April, but you can also direct-sow seeds in the garden in late May. The flowers attract many bees and other pollinators and will continue blooming until frost. My plants still look good in October despite being battered by storms and very large hail in late September.
I’m not going to let those pesky beetles stop me from growing this great back-of-the-flower-border plant.
