urgent sawfly question

[Shamie]

hi there, im in a lot of trouble with gooseberry sawfly, was away for the wkend, all my bushes were fine on friday morning, but on inspection this afternoon i found that they are infested with saw fly, i need to get rid of them fast before the bushes are stripped, any ideas please ?????

[WendyC]

Hand picking? Blast with a hose pipe?

[redser]

I'm thinking of pulling mine up. I've spent so long trying to deal with them but in the end they one and I now have two umbrella frames. And the buggers have moved on to my red currant and that's nearly stripped.

[mrbadexample]

This is the one time I have no hesitation in reaching for the chemicals:



Provado Ultimate Bug Killer, if you're happy to use it. You can dilute it 50/50 with water - it'll still work fine and you're spending half as much and putting half as much chemical on your pudding.

[boundtothesoil]

I'd hand pick them off a.s.a.p. into a container of salty water, as I prefer not to spray. By the time they've nearly stripped the bushes you can spot them pretty easily, plus the ones that have dropped onto the soil.

[Shamie]

thanks for all the replies, hand picking was not an option as i have 25 gooseberry bushes and 8 large jostaberries, i sprayed them with the garden hose this morning, and have come home this evening with a bug spray, i havent had sawfly in the past two years, but they have really come with a vengance this year, heres hoping they will not survive my attack this evening !!!!!!!!!!

[chris]

Bang the main stem - hard (with your hand, or a similar soft instrument) - a lot will drop off. Then work up the branches shaking them - a lot will drop off again.

I grow mine in pots, and turn them upside down - putting the leaves and branches in a bucket of water - for a couple of mins. Obviously, my bushes aren't that large though being in pots

[Two_Sheds]

Bang the main stem - hard

Put a sheet underneath first. If you have fish, drop all the sawfly grubs in their water, they love 'em

[sugar]

I have a lot of plants also (12 gooseberries, 15 currants). I used BT Xentari when the problems got to strong to control with handpicking. It's a bacterial treatment killing all caterpillars eating from the leaves; No other insects are harmed, it is not poisonous either. Way better then using chemicals leaving residues in the soil / fruits

[BUFFS]

i use newspaper under the bushes,put some marg/spread onto the paper and knock the bush about with a large stick,they will drop off (most) and get stuck to the spread,roll up the paper and into the bin with it,this year i was a bit late as i didnt want to go out in the chilly weather,and some of the plants suffered, while others were untouched..