Talkback: Vine weevils

Gardeners' World Web User

Here in the West Midlands vine weevils are alive and thriving. Despite every precaution taken with planting, using recommended chemicals etc. nothing deters them from invading every pot I plant up. Favourite plants seem to be heucheras and cyclamen. It breaks your heart to see entire planting arrangements keel over without warning due to the ever-hungry grubs. The only one to benefit is my robin, who is more than happy to tuck in!

Gardeners' World Web User

I'm also very familiar with the old weevil!

Only this week I was potting on and clearing my propagation area. In each pot of Ophiopogon (which I must say I detest) were at least two of this wonderful weevil's offspring. They were immediately offered to the birds as food of course!

I very rarely kill anything, but I completely agree with you on the issue of weevils and lilly beetle!

http://ryans-garden.blogspot.com/

Ryan

Gardeners' World Web User

I have for the first time found the evil weevil larvae in my strawberry planter - a creature that serves no useful purpose whatsoever. I am hoping the nematodes that I have ordered for delivery in May will put an end to these wee beasties!! Container growing is becoming ever more popular and it seems that it is container planting that is the attraction.

Gardeners' World Web User

Vine Weevils alive an well in Scotalnd. ESP on primulas

Gardeners' World Web User

we have these pests in most of our containers.we have a large biscuit tin that fit in our oven and we clear out and replace any affected containers treat them with weevil killer and then each time we use our oven the tin is put in to cook the compost in the remaining heat and it can then be reused

Gardeners' World Web User

Whenever you buy a potted plant from any Garden Centre Check it right away and if it is going to live in its pot and not into your garden REPOT IT with new soil
Ihave found tis is the only safe way to keep track of the grubs of the weevil
They have been overwintering in the Pots in the Greenhouse as well so check your plants carefully
The last few years have been prolific with them !
Does everyone know that the Lily beetle grubs live in black soot spots on the underside of lilies leaves so start looking now and squash them

Gardeners' World Web User

I have found by experimenting over the years that wine weevil beetles dont seem to lay their eggs in gritty soil,so I mix sand and grit into my pot compost and top it off with a layer of gravel .So far this seems to have worked. In my garden they mainly attack fuschias in pots.The above method wouldn't suit acid loving plants though.
It was interesting to read other people's way of dispatching the weevil grubs. I too feed the ones I find to the birds and leave the rest of the soil in the wheel barrow for a few days and the birds sift through it all to get any that I have missed.However I still wouldn't risk reusing the soil and use it to mulch the roses and spread on the flower beds.

Gardeners' World Web User

I have them at my allotment and they ate my leeks last year! How do you get rid of them other than squishing them when you have found them?

Gardeners' World Web User

I have just thrown out the remnance of what's left of my geum I have lost so many of my container plants, (ones that were kept from my late mother and very upsetting to lose. I have also tried chemicals as a last resort and nothing works, I certainly don't leave the grubs I bag everything up and down to the tip. I truly hate these things

Gardeners' World Web User

PLEASE DON'T BAG THESE GRUBS & SEND THE TO THE TIP....THEY THEN GET RECYCLED INTO THE COMPOST OR ON TO LAND FILL WHERE THEY BREED AND THE RETURN TO SOME OTHER POOR SAPS GARDEN! IF YOU ARE SQUEAMISH ABOUT SQUASHING THEM, PUT THEM INTO A BUCKET OF WATER TO DROWN THEM.LAST YEAR I LOST SOME TWO HUNDRED STRAWBERRY PLANTS TO THE MONSTERS DESPITE CONTINUOUSLY SEARCHING ANDKILLING ALL I FIND.I GARDEN ORGANICALLY BUT THEY ARE NOW MAKING ME FEEL THAT THE ONLY WAY TO GET RID OF THE BEASTS WOULD BE TO REVERT BACK TO CHEMICALS OR PACK IT IN ALTOGETHER!THEY
REALLY ARE THE BEETLE FROM HELL!

Gardeners' World Web User

I had a whole strawberry planter of alpine strawberry plants killed off by vine weevil and i used nemetodes to kill off the little blighters. I have a small garden so i used a pack suitable to treat the whole area including planters. This seems to have worked really well as since the problem occured a few years ago I have never been troubled since. This organic method worked far better than any chemical and I didn't have to worry about my kids being in the garden either.
Lily beetles though have been a harder problem to deal with as I love lilies but my plants no longer produce great flowers despite squashing every red thug i come across!