Hank, I had them for the first time last summer also. What a mess they made of my lilies. Madonna lilies that have been growing here for 40 years eaten down to nothing much less all the new lilies over the past few years. I was/am devastated.
Right now lilies are coming up everywhere. I don't even know if I want to start checking them. I would go around with a can of dish soap, bug killer and water and pick them off the plants. I would even smush the grubs with my fingers. Oh, I was mad. I spent hours of good gardening time killing them and I don't think I made much of a dent in them. I reported it to the Lily Beetle Tracker at
http://lilybeetletracker.weebl....
They responded quickly and I can see the beetles have moved moved even further than when I reported.
I am in Yates Co. in the Finger Lakes. None of my gardening friends have noticed them in their gardens or they have not looked close enough. I don't spray because of the hummers and many butterflies I have so I am at a loss of any other way of controlling them that hand picking.
I am so glad to have found a fellow NYer fighting this problem.
Joy
