Earwigs be Icky - June 2018
Ick! Ick! Ick!
I think my problem (last post) is earwigs. I never saw any snail trails, and some Internet research photos look like earwig damage. So, I set some traps.
Traps for earwigs? YES! And, boy do they fall for them! So much so I get the ickies in the morning dumping the traps out. Really, really, icky. If you don't like "icky" don't read on. Really.
So, take a small can or container (I used both empty cat food cans and some short plastic cups from the Dollar Tree) and pour in 1/2 vegetable oil and 1/2 soy sauce. I got the soy sauce from the Dollar Tree, the bottles are bigger than those I buy for food use, and just $1.00. I will caution you NOT to use this for your eggrolls! I dropped a bottle (plastic), and when I opened it right after that it foamed out like a soda! I have never had my eating soy sauce foam, and it comes in a shaker type dispenser. So, either this was expired and fermented too much, or it's a poor quality soy sauce. It works for earwig traps though...
Dig a hole in the area you want to bait, and set the cup/can in the hole, snugging the soil up to the edge (the earwigs need to walk right in).
The first night, night before last, I only set a trap in the Butterfly Garden, near the Russell lupine skeleton. It worked so well, last night I placed two in the Butterfly Garden, two in the main tomato bed, two in the "close the barn door, the horse in gone" bed (that had the hartwort), two in the old raspberry bed (where the borage is getting holey, and the amaranth and dill seedlings disappeared) and one in each of the other beds.
Yesterday morning I eagerly, yet with trepidation, checked the Butterfly Garden trap. OH... MY...GOD... it was DISGUSTING! I HATE ICKY THINGS and this was ICKY TIMES TEN! WARNING... IF ICKIES BOTHER YOU, DON'T LOOK! I am avoiding it myself.
Yep, I'm pretty sure my problem is earwigs...
Last night, after placing the traps, I noticed one of the dogs was not with me. Now, if you know Edward the Goldendoodle, you probably have already figured out that he likes the taste of soy sauce mixed with vegetable oil. Yes, there he was, ensconced in the Butterfly Garden, licking out the "bait." This morning I had to get dressed early and go out with the dogs, so I could gather up the cans and cups before he started licking up dead earwigs! EWWW... worse than the cat poop he favors.
Here's last night's earwig take:
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| oh... I see an innocent spider in there... sorry fella |
A few were surprisingly almost empty. The Butterfly Garden was still the worst (best?). I'm going to put them back with new bait until all of them are nearly empty in the morning.
What about Ask and Expert? Not a lot of help. No definite identification of what caused the damage. Most likely snails or slugs, but with the lack of a slime trail it could be earwigs. Or something else. But, with the number of earwigs found in the morning, I go for earwigs. At least for the major portion of the damage.
What a disappointing response! Bad/wrong advice and a lecture? ~shakes head~ Looks like you were right. That is disgusting. I should probably put out bait. Something keeps taking a chunk out of my ripening strawberries, which are so tiny that's enough to ruin the entire fruit. ~sigh~ This is my first ever attempt, the two plants bought on a whim. What little I've been able to eat are sure bright and tart, though. Happier Gardening, my dear.
ReplyDeleteI edited the part you commented on! I realized the help is local, so who knows if they might see the negativity I wrote!
ReplyDeleteMy strawberries always take a hit from pill bugs. I find them curled up in a hole in the mornings. I only have a few plants now, and had planned on a special bed next year, but changed my mind. Others grow wonderful beds with no problems, I can't.