seed potatoes under attack!

[Bill HH]

I have been planting my spuds today and noticed some white specks on some of them, On closer examination they seemed to be eggs because they didnt move and were hard to squash. About the size of fly blows. Then i found a hole in one spud and cut it up. there was a tunnel from the outside about an inch long and then a larger space which contained more of these eggs? and an insect that looked like a wood louse but much smaller. Any ideas? is my crop doomed?

[Martin H]

Have you been keeping the potatoes damp? The white dots might be lenticels, there's a picture at the bottom of this page: Excess Water Problems in Potato | Weekly Crop Update – Cooperative Extension in Delaware

The hole might have been there already and the insect might be a small woodlouse?

If the spuds have healthy chits I wouldn't worry.

[Bill HH]

Thats a very sound suggestion, the while spots in the link look very similar but mine seem independant of the potato, by that i mean they can be easily wiped of. Also the wood lice type creature may well be a woodlice. Tomorrow i will try and get some pictures.

[Bill HH]

Ok here are some pics. this morning I found a seed potato complete with hole and a slug outside of it, he quickly (in slug terms) returned into the hole. So that's the hole sorted. But what are these white things, the picture shows a few but I have wiped of dozens of the other spuds, they are hard and completely independent of the potato.Could they be slug eggs or slug poo?

[Martin H]

Wow, I'm completely stumped.

They do look like little eggs, but they don't look like eggs of slugs, snails, centipedes, millipedes or woodlice.

Hopefully an expert will happen past...

[Bill HH]

I am leaning towards eggs because they seem to appear in clumps, but what kind of eggs I have no idea,maybe I'll sit on a clutch for a week or two.

[Potstubsdustbins]

Careful Bill you wouldn't want some to hatch and bite your..................

[Hazel at the Hill]

They look like butterfly eggs to me, but that seems a bit unlikely. Where have you been chitting your spuds?

[Bill HH]

They look like butterfly eggs to me, but that seems a bit unlikely. Where have you been chitting your spuds?

They are in my poly tunnel, I havent seen any butterflies, maybe the odd moth when I open my wallet.

[Nicos]

Fly eggs?they look the right shape

[mothhawk]

Ant eggs? Ants do move their eggs about to warm spots, but I'd have thought you'd have seen some ants near them. You'll just have to keep some in a jar till they hatch, then let us know what you've got