Written and edited by Tammy 7th October 2023
One of the most often referred to questions I hear is "what's eating my seedlings!?"Determining the answer is a bit of a Sherlock Holmes "who done it". It's a matter of looking for all the clues and putting the puzzle pieces together.
Slugs and snails-Look out for silvery trails all over the foliage and the ground. They need moisture to be able to move around otherwise they're at risk of their bodies drying out, so when the weather is hot and dry, they're normally hiding somewhere cool and dark. If it's recently been raining and everything is wet, there's a good possibility slugs or snails are your culprit.
Earwigs, millipedes or beetles- Like slugs and snails are mostly nocturnal. During the day you'll find them hiding in the dark under rocks, logs and debris. They are renowned for chomping tender little seedlings off at the stems. If you don't see the evidence pointing to snails, you could perhaps suspect these critters.
Caterpillars-as the weather fines up and the days grow longer, keep an eye out for cabbage moths. If you see them flying around, there's a good chance they'll be laying their eggs on the undersides of the foliage of your plants. The eggs hatch and hungry little caterpillars emerge. Lime green in colour, they camouflage well, you'll find them chomping away at the underside of the leaves. As with snails and earwigs they can decimate a crop of seedlings very quickly, almost overnight.
Aphids- will be obvious in daylight hours, you'll see them infesting new young shoots and foliage, they absolutely love roses too, so be vigilant for them there as well. They are sap suckers and will leave the new growth looking limp and yellow, drained of life.
Rodents and native wildlife- It's not always just grubs, bugs and creepy crawlies. Particularly if you live rurally or on the outskirts of town, mice, rats, rabbits and even birds don't mind a bit of greenery in their diets too. Make sure you install some rodent mesh around your veggie patch.
Vigilance and prevention are always better than cure, so when you plant out new little seedlings, don't be afraid to lay out some pet friendly snail bait around them. When you are watering them daily, get down amongst them and check there's nothing crawling around on or beneath the foliage. Look for some clues and hopefully you'll be able to determine for yourself exactly who your culprit is.
Have a wonderful weekend,
Happy Gardeningđđąđ¸
Comments