Author Topic: Earwigs (Read 4805 times)

sabrina · « **on:** July 04, 2013, 10:40:41 am »

Not sure but something is eating my cucumber plants in the pollytunnel. There seems to be a lot of young earwigs. would they be my problem and if so what do I do.

Fanackapan · « **Reply #1 on:** July 04, 2013, 06:50:41 pm »

An old trick is to put a garden cane alongside the plants, stuff a plant pot with straw and turn it upside down on the top of the cane. The theory is the earwigs nest in there to sleep, you just collect them in the morning and dispose of them. However, I have never tried this so don't know how successful it is. Hate earwigs, especially when I have picked a few flowers and arranged them only to find these little monsters climbing down the vase.

Fleecewife · « **Reply #2 on:** July 05, 2013, 09:18:05 am »

Is it not more likely to be slugs and snails? I don't think earwigs eat anything as large as plants, but go more for fungi and algae sized food.

I love earwigs, since I discovered more about them. Yes they are annoying when I open the bolt on the wooden gate into my veg patch only to find it stuffed with earwigs, or when they take over my egg honesty box and get inside the egg boxes (the postie dropped his in the road once when he opened it to admire the colours but found an earwig in there

).

On the other hand, the females are very diligent mothers, washing and turning their eggs every day, so they don't get algae and mildew on, brooding the eggs like a hen and looking after their young when they are still at the white stage. If the eggs somehow get scattered the mother will search them out and bring them back to her nest, carrying them in her mouth.
If you find them inside flowers, just hold the flowers upside down and shake or tap them before you bring them into the house. I've noticed they particularly love to hide inside nasturtium flowers, down that tube at the back, so check that carefully before you put them in your salad

I don't think they do any harm in the garden but are just part of the huge variety of life. They can give you a little nip if you threaten their babies - but that's fair. Mainly they use those nippers to hold on with during mating, and to help fold their wings under the wing cases, as they are apparently very intricately folded. Not the most beautiful of the insects, but they aren't criminals - and I doubt they are the culprits in your cucumber patch.

sabrina · « **Reply #3 on:** July 05, 2013, 09:13:58 pm »

I had thought it must be slugs but never found any. Could do with CTV in there but I expect that would be a bit over the top even for me.

Mammyshaz · « **Reply #4 on:** July 05, 2013, 11:08:19 pm »

I may be wrong but I thought earwigs ate decaying plant rather than fresh. I stand to be corrected if I'm talking jibberjabber

Just edited to say I talk jibberjabber

been on the net to find out they love lots of plants and tender shoots

Fleecewife · « **Reply #5 on:** July 06, 2013, 12:09:36 am »

Don't believe everything you read on the internet

Sabrina, do you have a photo of the damage so we can hold an inquisition?

SallyintNorth · « **Reply #6 on:** July 06, 2013, 01:32:28 am »

I can categorigally confirm that Mammyshaz has talked some jibberjabber

I had a real earwig problem when I started up a garden next to a cottage. The first year they stripped everything completely naked - green leaves and opening flower petals.

I did the upside-down plant pots thing, though being a softie I couldn't kill the ravening b%$tds so took them a long long loooong walk into deep countryside and released them.

I did this every morning for months. The numbers did decline somewhat but we didn't get to zero. In the end I decided that the straw-filled upside-down plant pots were nearly as disfiguring as the depradations of the earwigs, so took them down.

After that first year I never had so much of a problem. They were there, and they did eat some leaves and petals, but we had enough plants by then that I could spare some for the earwigs. Maybe some earwig predators had moved in by then, too.

We certainly had some toads - wonder if they eat earwigs?

Fleecewife · « **Reply #7 on:** July 06, 2013, 08:23:55 am »

The jibberjabberer is me then......but I still won't believe such slander about my little pet earwigs until I see them with my own eyes becoming ravening hordes and demolishing plants

Maybe you weren't feeding them enough moulds and fungi Sally so they were forced to eat your greenery, whilst finding every mouthful distasteful

For there to be so many you must have disturbed their metropolis when you made the garden. Oh how could you be so cruel

SallyintNorth · « **Reply #8 on:** July 06, 2013, 08:49:18 am »

All true!

Lesley Silvester · « **Reply #9 on:** July 06, 2013, 04:54:23 pm »

I think jibberjabber is a wonderful word.

Fleecewife · « **Reply #10 on:** July 06, 2013, 06:29:12 pm »

Quote from: Mad Goatwoman of Madeley on July 06, 2013, 04:54:23 pm

I think jibberjabber is a wonderful word.

But it's lots and lots of words

Lesley Silvester · « **Reply #11 on:** July 06, 2013, 09:23:27 pm »

sabrina · « **Reply #12 on:** July 07, 2013, 09:04:41 am »

I have lettuce in the pollytunnel and nothing has touched that. Cucumber plants almost gone, cabbage plants not touched either. Going to put a straw filled pot in today. I found a load of babies under a stone that I had holding down some netting for the plant to grow up. I am not good at killing anything as everything has a right to life ( I know stupid ) never be a top gardener .