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Asparagus and Leather Jackets

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  • Asparagus and Leather Jackets

    I planted a new asparagus bed last summer and it is now producing spears, I don't intend to cut any this year and let the crop develop and settle in, however other critters have different ideas
    Weeding today I found a lot of slugs and slug damage so I'm off to get a few cans of cheap beer for traps.
    I also found an ant colony, which apart from the stinging I got should not be a problem directly to the crop, I hope.

    There were also a large amount of leather jacket grubs, I destroyed what I found, are these a danger to my asparagus by munching on it also?
    The most puzzling thing is I have never had a leather jacket problem in this part of my garden before.

  • #2
    Hi there

    Quick facts

    Common name: Leatherjackets, daddy-longlegs, crane flies
    Latin name: Tipula spp.
    Plants affected: Mainly lawn grasses but also seedlings and small plants
    Main symptoms: Lawns develop yellowish brown dead patches; seedlings collapse having been eaten at soil level; presence of leatherjackets in the soil
    Caused by The larval stage of crane flies or daddy-longlegs
    Timing: February-October

    Leatherjackets can be damaging in lawn and sometimes kill small plants in flower beds and vegetable plots by eating roots and stem bases. They are often more numerous after a wet autumn, as damp conditions favour survival of eggs and young larvae.

    There are currently no chemical controls for leatherjackets on lawns which can be applied by home gardeners.

    A biological control is available for controlling leatherjackets in lawns, flower beds and vegetable plots. This is a pathogenic nematode, Steinernema feltiae, which is watered into the turf or soil. The nematodes enter the bodies of leatherjackets and infect them with a bacterial disease. To be effective, the nematode requires soil that is well drained but moist and with a minimum temperature of 12°C (54°F).
    The day that Microsoft makes something that doesn't suck ...

    ... is the day they make vacuum cleaners

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    • #3
      If the ants are disturbing the young crowns a sprinkling of ground cinnamon should put them off.
      Location ... Nottingham

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