What's happening here?

[Sim2500]

I'm growing some romanesco broccoli and two plants have had narrow stem and then just died.

See link for a pic

http://imgur.com/a/eiIZCAe

Can anyone shed insight on what's happening

Thanks

[MelanieSW]

Could it be slugs/snails? I've had similar with a few seedlings and on closer inspection the stems had been rasped by the little blighters.

[ameno]

It could be slugs or snails. Or it could be ants. Over the past two years I've lost 8 or so brassica seedlings to ants. Black ants chew through the stems at ground level (it's definitely them; I've caught them in the act).

[Plot70]

I have also found woodlice cutting into seedling stems at ground level too.
Ants usually kill plants if the greenfly they spread do not stick to them.
Slugs do strip the bark off young runner beans too.

[Snoop Puss]

Slugs do strip the bark off young runner beans too.

I wondered what was doing that to some of my climbing French beans. Thanks, Plot70.

[Plot70]

You have to go out with a torch or light sabre at night. A tray of salt to drop them into is the easiest way to get the slime out of them.

[bikermike]

My money is on slugs if you go out at the right time you'll just find one sitting on that point nibbling away.
Check under pots, lips of pots, trays etc. I'll bet the culprit isn't far away.

I like the idea of a lightsabre.
I just drown mine.

[Plot70]

The light sabre is a cheap thing I bought from one of the usual discount stores.
It is a bit over a foot long with LEDs down one side and can be poked in below the plants to see the slimy pests approaching.

[ameno]

My money is on slugs if you go out at the right time you'll just find one sitting on that point nibbling away.
Check under pots, lips of pots, trays etc. I'll bet the culprit isn't far away.

I like the idea of a lightsabre.
I just drown mine.

I usually just stamp on them or make slug kebabs (skewer them on a pointy stick).
I have far too many to faff about collecting them up to drown, plus I've found before that slugs rotting in water absolutely stink.
Plus leaving the dead slugs in situ reduces slug attack for a few days, as there seems to be nothing slugs like to eat more than dead slugs, which means for a while they are distracted from your plants.