Hi all, I'm an organic Gardner who has never used any pest control chemicals but I am having a terrible time with woodlice. There are thousands of them visible in a small patch of land and they are eating all my strawberries, dahliah shoots and seedlings. I understand that it's hard to believe if you have a healthy population in your own garden but when it's out of control, it's no joke. I am looking for a natural solution, as the bids don't seem as interested in eating them as I hoped. I am not hating on woodlice, they play an incredible role in healthy ecosystems. Any advice without the scorn/disbelief etc. Would be welcome.
Woodlice like dark, damp places so I would put down some sheets of damp cardboard or a carpet tile and, next morning, lift it, scoop them up and relocate them. Concerted action for a couple of weeks should bring the issue under control.
Around 5m2, I put down strulch last year and it's been amazing for my pants but it's also when I started seeing a huge increase in woodlice. Thanks for the advice, will give it a go tonight.
Last night I decided to declare war on the slugs eating my young marigold seedlings. Once it got dark I went out to the garden with a flashlight. I was prepared to dispose of the offending slugs by picking and drowning.............NO SLUGS! Instead I found thousands of pill bugs. Turns out that these little buggers (normally harmless and, in fact, beneficial) love tender young plants such as marigolds, potatoes and basil. My adult son smiled and commented that they didn't like the old, bitterr ones. I snarled at him. Here in Ontario, Canada we are not allowed to use toxic chemicals but I am introducing them to dimataceous earth. A circle of dimataceous earth will appear around each marigolds in the infested garden bed. WAR!
Hello organic gardener here, too. I think it may be part of the problem! We have gazillions of woodlice and as they reproduce asexually and can have 200 young each time all of which can go on to replicate again within a short space of time, i think in an organic garden with all the compost and wild areas and no chemicals it is not surprising they can get out of hand. We have a problem with the utterly delicious apples on our apple tree. It is a dwarf apple trained near a wall (not against, to allow for air circulation). The apples are quite simply the best I've ever tasted. But they are irresistible to woodlice - they get in through the top near the stalk usually, eating a tiny hole and then they excavate inside and have their young there. Because they are at my height, I have this year watched the apples every day several times a day when taking the new puppy out. There are no other pest holes on the apples for the woodlice to take advantage of - one day they are fine and the next - a tiny hole, which gets bigger. If I harvest the apple, and cut it open lots of little baby woodlice at varying stages fall out. They aren't in any other part of the apple. Last year the tree was loaded and we could afford to let them have a few but this year there are only 7 apples and we have four apples left. I'll be looking at finding ways to attract them somewhere else, and perhaps as I read on a another post on another forum, putting a metal collar round the base of the tree and refitting each year. I don't know if that dissuades woodlice really but I'm willing to try anything - EVEN in this wholly organic for 35 years garden using something against them, as they really are everywhere, just too many. A plague.
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Woodlice like dark, damp places so I would put down some sheets of damp cardboard or a carpet tile and, next morning, lift it, scoop them up and relocate them. Concerted action for a couple of weeks should bring the issue under control.
Thanks for the advice, will give it a go tonight.