My friend's Japanese Beetle trap

I have been thinking about trying traps, maybe next year. My wife has been picking off the bugs from her plants with success - preserved her roses, etc. I like the idea of something reusable, rather than throwing out the bags, but it looks so messy, it might be worthwhile to just throw away the bag - again I don't think we have near as bad a problem as in pic. However, I've read that they might attract more bugs than they kill; not sure if that is totally true though, and we can put them a good distance away from her plants.

Waddya think? They attract the buggers, but are they effective?

See if you can get a neighbor a block or so away to put some in. A potent sex lure will draw bugs from miles around. Likely whats happening in the OP's picture.

I've re-used the Rescue brand traps for the last couple years putting the pheromone attractors together in a zip loc bag out of season.
Dunno why yet, but I only catch beetles ( and mostly the brown ones) with the Rescue brand traps. Have had no luck with the Spectracide ones.
Tried a Rescue attractor on a Spectracide bag but we didn't have many beetles this year.
Grape leaves usually look like lace. Not this year.

If you put it in your own yard you're asking for more beetles than you'll kill

Yah, i hear those traps just keep pulling the beetles from your neighbors yards into your yard. I had a small problem with them on my grape vines, i tried the trap, but it didn't seem to have results like that, the beetles were more interested in humping on my grape vines. What i did do instead which worked better was just sprayed them with some sevin, no more beetle problem..

Japanese beetles are one of those species that responds well to bug juice. You collect a bunch of them is a bucket with water, whirl it up in an old blender and strain. Spray with it. I can't say that I have tried it, but others tell me it works. When I catch 'em copulating on the bean vines, I squish 'em and leave their rotting carcasses as an example to the other beetles. Can't say that they have disappeared, but I have noticed less of them.

Wow, I have never seen anything quite like that!

I have fairly predominate SW winds.
I've sat and watched the traps, the beetles all fly in from the NE which is where my grapes and raspberries are which would be full of beetles otherwise.

The traps attract enough from my gardens to be worth my time or I wouldn't bother.

Mad Dog and I split the beer, I think smoke ate the slugs