Flying insect prevention - should I bother?

[lucym]

Hi! I'm going to be growing a few veg with my daughter this year. I don't want my daughter to become disheartened so I was thinking of taking some steps to prevent pests. I've got some anti-slug measures lined up, but was wondering about flying bugs - carrot fly etc. I looked at the Which? report on meshes etc and they reckon thin fleece is the best and is cheap but not very durable, that Enviromesh Ultra Fine and Wondermesh were very good and durable but expensive, and ordinary Enviromesh was the worst. I've got some thin fleece anyway, and was looking at getting some Wondermesh but at the price, when I suddenly wondered if I need bother at all...?

We'll be growing in a small raised bed and pots on our patio, which is in a small garden completely enclosed on all sides with at least four foot of solid fence or the house - there's a small gap under the side gate, but that's all. So given that carrot fly is reputed to be such a crap flyer, what are the chances of it getting in to the garden at all? We haven't grown veg before, and neither have neighbours on either side to my knowledge. The bed is filled with bought compost. The prevailing wind blows away from the houses out over the fields.

On the other hand, we do back directly onto farmland (although they grew a cereal crop last year in that field), there is an allotment site less than a mile away as the crow flies and the land on which our house was built just over ten years ago was apparently used for allotments.

So, would you bother? We'll be growing carrots, brocolli, french beans, peas, lettuce, shallots, spring onions, tomatoes, potatoes, baby sweetcorn, some herbs and flowers.

Thank you!

Lucy

[SueA]

Hi Lucy, I think the female carrot fly is supposed to fly no higher than about 12-18ins off the ground so your carrots in pots might be O.K. but if your raised bed isn't that high you may need some kind of wall of mesh building around the outside of it, or you could just try planting carrots inbetween some onions & garlic etc. to cover the smell. As for the flies getting in over the fence I think they must be able to get in one way or another as our garden has high fences & we've been hit by carrot fly a couple of times.

[Lesley Jay]

Try growing carrot fly resistant varieties such as Flyaway and Resistafly.

[smallblueplanet]

For carrots you could try a fleece 'fence', very easy to staple fleece to some pieces of 1"x1" 'posts'. I think also you can minimise the problems if you keep the smell of carrots to a minimum - be careful when you thin them out, when you water them and when you pull them? Or as has been suggested try to conceal their smell. I think the timing of when you grow carrots can help too, less carrot fly about? But I'm not sure.

We bought some ordinary environmesh (as far as I know it wasn't super-duper - I don't think I've even heard of ultra-fine stuff, but we've had our stuff for ages) and constructed a low-level (2-2&1/2ft high) cage with bamboo canes and that is the only time when growing cabbage/cauli/brocolli etc we haven't been plagued by caterpillars.

[Two_Sheds]

I put Voile net curtains on mine (about £2 a metre). You must, must, must protect your brassicas against Cabbage White butterflies...or you'll get a crop full of caterpillar poo (if you get a crop at all of course)

[lucym]

Thanks for your comments everyone!

Lucy

[shirlthegirl43]

I put Voile net curtains on mine (about £2 a metre). You must, must, must protect your brassicas against Cabbage White butterflies...or you'll get a crop full of caterpillar poo (if you get a crop at all of course)

Brilliant idea Two sheds - do you put it on curtain wire or poles? Having trouble finding fleece stuff here so the nets might just be the cure - might even be able to get them cheaper in the charity shops!

[lucym]

Just to add, on the basis of this morning's activities, our biggest pest (in all ways) is likely to be my one year old - compost tastes interesting, doesn't it Charlie?

[carlseawolf]

look in charity shops for net curtains as these are always cheap.