Woodlice will not do damage to the strawberries in the first instance-they wait for birds ans slugs to do the dirty work first then move in-they are the hyenas of the insect world- a secondary predator if you like
They eat plant debris and such like- so are quite useful in that sense-not really a pest- more of a nuisance.
Be careful where you source your straw for your berries. I had some trees delivered a few years ago, well wrapped in nice dry straw. So I used it - on the grounds of waste not want not - and grew the most incredible amount of weed grasses I had ever seen. Some 7 years later they are still pesting the area, no matter how much we dig and pull to get rid of them. Sometimes cork type mats are a safer option as far as not introducing weeds is concerned. You can also cut up some weed suppressing membrane, makes good collars for strawberries and other crops.
Wood lice cannot eat your strawberries unless something else has started the damage. They have extremely small mouthparts which only allow the ingestion of liquid food, they will suck out the juices once the dkin is broken on the fruit, but cannot do that themselves. There really is no need to kill them, they are harmless - but can be a bit horrid in vast numbers. You could brush them up in a dustpan and take a bucketful to the local woodlands for release. I expect they will get eaten by the birds, but that is natural and I can live with that.
I've also heard that you shouldn't use oat straw as it can carry eelworms. I always use barley or wheat straw. I am lucky as I buy it for £2 a bale from a local farm, and it is always good quality.
Dont know what gardening mag you read that says slugs dont climb pots !! Very wrong. Slugs can climb almost anything, even had them in hanging baskets. I am always removing them from in my pots of bedding plants...whats left of them ! You can try copper bands around pots, that will help but if there is any leaves overhanging that they can climb on they willand munch munch munch.
We must have very acrobatic slugs here too, as a pot doesn't seem to stop them. I even had one climbing up the bathroom window..presumably he could smell the little gem lettuce seedlings on the windowsill! LOL!!
Posts
Woodlice will not do damage to the strawberries in the first instance-they wait for birds ans slugs to do the dirty work first then move in-they are the hyenas of the insect world- a secondary predator if you like
They eat plant debris and such like- so are quite useful in that sense-not really a pest- more of a nuisance.
woodlice only eat dead and rotting wood.
Sorry-that is wrong- they eat dead or decaying plant matter-there is a lot on the woodlouse here
http://a-z-animals.com/animals/woodlouse/
I stand corrected
but they do eat dead and decaying wood as well.
Be careful where you source your straw for your berries. I had some trees delivered a few years ago, well wrapped in nice dry straw. So I used it - on the grounds of waste not want not - and grew the most incredible amount of weed grasses I had ever seen. Some 7 years later they are still pesting the area, no matter how much we dig and pull to get rid of them. Sometimes cork type mats are a safer option as far as not introducing weeds is concerned. You can also cut up some weed suppressing membrane, makes good collars for strawberries and other crops.
Wood lice cannot eat your strawberries unless something else has started the damage. They have extremely small mouthparts which only allow the ingestion of liquid food, they will suck out the juices once the dkin is broken on the fruit, but cannot do that themselves. There really is no need to kill them, they are harmless - but can be a bit horrid in vast numbers. You could brush them up in a dustpan and take a bucketful to the local woodlands for release. I expect they will get eaten by the birds, but that is natural and I can live with that.
I've also heard that you shouldn't use oat straw as it can carry eelworms. I always use barley or wheat straw. I am lucky as I buy it for £2 a bale from a local farm, and it is always good quality.
We must have very acrobatic slugs here too, as a pot doesn't seem to stop them. I even had one climbing up the bathroom window..presumably he could smell the little gem lettuce seedlings on the windowsill! LOL!!
I remember seeing this film-you do not want slugs in the bathroom
http://www.horrorchronicles.com/mutant/monster-movies/slugs-the-movie-1988-review.html
I just had a read of that...don't think I'll be watching it, but maybe I could snaffle an iphone and make my own movie! LOLOL!!!