Pea and bean pest

[J.V.]

Hi all,

A nasty infestation in my autumn sowing of peas and broad beans has forced me to finally stop lurking and start posting... if you can help confirm the identify of the pest and/or suggest appropriate action (organic, within reason) I would be very grateful

I recently transplanted 4 x 4' double rows of peas (sown in guttering) and 40+ broad beans (sown in 3" - 4" pots). All seedlings seemed healthy and vigorous. Within five days, a quarter of the peas had collapsed and a few days later now, almost all have given up. The beans held up longer: half a dozen have collapsed and about half those remaining are already starting to wilt. I have no doubt that they will all die off within a few more days

At first we wondered whether they objected to the cold damp soil thanks to the recent miserable weather, but today I discovered the real culprit - an infestation of some sort of larvae. These small (5mm - 7mm) cream coloured fellows were easy to find on the broad beans - gobbling the remains of the seed and tunnelling up the stem. Some pictures of the offenders (if I managed to figure out how to attach them!): a wilting broad bean plant - the blackened stem near the soil line shows where they have been tunnelling; several of the larvae attacking the seed; and a closeup of one of them ugly bugs...



I have had a look around and the only suggestion I could find was 'bean seed fly' larvae, but I have not had any experience of these before - can anyone confirm this identification and/or suggest what I can do to deal with it now or prevent in the future...?

In particular, I am a bit concerned about what I can now plant in that bed. This was a newly cultivated bed (just reclaimed from rough grass and weed), and (if I have the identification wrong) whether it is possible that the pest was brought in with the manure I dug into the bed a couple of weeks ago.

Hope someone can help

JV

[binley100]

Hi and welcome , I've found this which may (or not ) help ....
http://www.which.co.uk/documents/pdf...ies-151468.pdf

[J.V.]

Thanks - it certainly sounds like it could be the problem.

It doesn't mention peas, though, and isn't it a bit late in the season to be causing such trouble now? Hopefully, somebody will have seen these before...

[binley100]

It's been a funny old year season wise .........anything could be happening .

[Two_Sheds]

isn't it a bit late in the season to be causing such trouble now?

"As many as four generations may occur during the summer if the conditions are suitable" (from Bin's link). We've had a very warm October, so it is quite likely suitable for these critters to be still breeding.

How to deal with it?
Try sowing again, in pots. Bring the plants on a bit over winter and then transplant them in the spring. This pest does target newly cultivated soil like yours.

[J.V.]

That's true - it has been a funny year weather wise... I've already got another batch of peas sown and will sow more broad beans tomorrow.

The peas at least will need to leave the guttering in a couple of weeks, but perhaps I can clear one of the old beds to make room for them - I'm not risking planting in that soil again for a while...

I'm always amazed how critters manage to find their target crops - I'm virtually surrounded on all sides by lakes, so they must come a long way off track just to harrass me

Oh well, that's how it goes - everything else has gone fairly well this year, so I can't complain

JV