I got the flea beetle blues,

[Veggie Mackem]

OK, so flea beetle is the latest challenge, they're feasting out on my pak choi and I thought I'd tricked then by covering my whole brassica bed in scaffold netting then I discover that the lavae start life in the soil, derrr!
I'm going to try an infusion of garlic in boiled water then spray the crop (allow it to cool first of course) then see if this will ward them off, anyone got any thoughts on this.

[rustylady]

I seem to remember someone saying that you can cover a board with sticky stuff, shake your plants and the beetles will fall off and get stuck. Never tried it myself.

[Pies]

Py Insect Killer Powder 175g of Plant Me Now

[Jardiniere]

my rocket, pak choi etc etc are always hit with flea beetle.....i dont use insecticides etc ..i find that if you grow enough you can eat the stuff even when its been pitted by the little b****** and as it grows bigger they leave it alone....have never found a cure...might try that garlic infusion tho......

[gojiberry]

I find that if I can get plants to a reasonable size before planting out then the flea beetle damage is not such a problem.

Ian

[Veggie Mackem]

Thanks for the thoughts, yes the crop is still quite small so maybe it'll survive and I'll let you know how I get on with garlic tea!! I was going to do it tonight but it hasn't stopped raining so haven't gone near the plot........... cheers all.

[Jardiniere]

You are right gojiberry, my brassicas dont get as badly affected cos i start them in pots but i grow my pak choi, rocket,mizuma etc straight into the plot and they always get hit .......

[Veggie Mackem]

If all else fails then this may be the last resort.........cheers.

[TallGirl]

my brassicas dont get as badly affected cos i start them in pots but i grow my pak choi, rocket,mizuma etc straight into the plot and they always get hit .......

Got exactly the same problem The pak choi is hardly moving at all cos it's getting nibbled so badly.

I was going to try the sticky-card-waving thing a few times. We should post back and say if it worked or not.

[Florence Fennel]

They were using garlic spray on soft fruit last night on Beechgrove, but I didn't hear why! It was the bought stuff too, not a home recipe. Might be worth a google.