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Get Rid of Woodlice!

Cara5Cara5 Posts: 6
in Problem solving

I have a SEVERE infestation of woodlice in my walled Brighton garden.  It probably originated from the railroad ties used to border the raised beds perhaps a decade ago, but it is out of control.  They are under every pot, in the soil, it is driving me crazy.  In addition to the planted areas, I have about 20 plants in pots and they get in and eat the roots.  I am not one for pesticides but I need to get these under control I do not want to use some of the "organic" ways to kill them, which seem very cruel as they take a long time to die by dehydration.  I feel the quickest way is the most humane, even if it involves a periodic lethal spray in certain areas.

PLEASE ONLY REPLY IF YOU HAVE A QUICK, SURE WAY OF GETTING RID OF THEM.

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  • SussexsunSussexsun Posts: 1,444

    Wilkos ant and crawling insect powder will kill them. Cheap at only £1 and easy to use.

    or if you prefer a spray dethlac spay will also do the job. It is a bit more expensive at around £4 and is also stocked by wilkos or most garden centres and diy sheds.

    To see a world in a grain of sand and heaven in a wild flower Hold infinity in the palm of your hand and eternity in an hour.

  • Cara5Cara5 Posts: 6

    Thank you very much for this.image

  • nutcutletnutcutlet Posts: 27,295

    Glad to hear you're not one for pesticides

    We all know how much damage they do, even if we pretend they don't so we can have our instant fix.

    And nobody would use a pesticide on something as harmless as woodlice would they?

    Well done Cara and Sussex Sun. image



    In the sticks near Peterborough
  • Ladybird4Ladybird4 Posts: 36,820

    I cannot believe that you would kill woodlice. They don't do any harm to living plants as they live on dead and decaying material in soils. Make them a little log pile and persuade them to move in there.

    Cacoethes: An irresistible urge to do something inadvisable
  • B3B3 Posts: 26,417

    I ignore them unless they're in the bottom of a flowerpot I want to use. Then I tip them out. I'm not aware of them eating any of my live plants but some other members disagree.

    In London. Keen but lazy.
  • Blue OnionBlue Onion Posts: 2,963

    I have them all over the garden, and they've never done a bit of harm.  They are great composers.. eating up the bits of last years leaves I've used as mulch around my direct sown seeds (which the woodlice don't bother).  

    They aren't eating your plant roots.. just the compost mix.  

    Utah, USA.
  • SussexsunSussexsun Posts: 1,444

    Woodlice will eat seedlings and love a nice ripe strawberry straight off the plant.

    As the females breed asexually one female can produce around 200 young which live around 4 years each. Who will also continue to produce young. Sometimes there is just too big a colony to tempt them into a wood pile or compost heap and they need to be controlled.

    To see a world in a grain of sand and heaven in a wild flower Hold infinity in the palm of your hand and eternity in an hour.

  • nutcutletnutcutlet Posts: 27,295

    yeah, OK. funny I've never noticed this damage in all my gardening years

    I prefer a garden full of life not death 



    In the sticks near Peterborough
  • nutcutletnutcutlet Posts: 27,295
    Muddle-Up says:

    image  nut......EXACTLY.

    See original post

     The question is M-U, are we in the majority or the minority?

    There are shelves and shelves of stuff to kill things, all waiting in the GCs. You could get the impression they're essential to gardening. 



    In the sticks near Peterborough
  • FairygirlFairygirl Posts: 53,910

    Blimey - it's a miracle I have anything growing then - the amount of woodlice we have! The only things that 'share' my strawberries are the slugs, snails and birds!  image

    It's a place where beautiful isn't enough of a word....



    I live in west central Scotland - not where that photo is...
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