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permaculture - Re: [permaculture] Sow bugs eating the strawberries

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  • From: rrandall1 <rrandall1@houston.rr.com>
  • To: permaculture <permaculture@lists.ibiblio.org>
  • Subject: Re: [permaculture] Sow bugs eating the strawberries
  • Date: Thu, 16 Jun 2005 14:43:29 -0500

I agree with everyone that advocates dry mulches. I have had good luck with pine straw. The best solution for small numbers of plants is to hang the berries on small letter H wire made from cutting up old useless wire fencing say with 2 x 3 inch mesh. Later in the season, I find the berries have long enough stems so that when I am out there picking, I can place the green berries hanging from the leaf stems. If they are off the ground, they avoid the sow bugs.

Removing mulch entirely, at least when I lived in BC, reduced the number of ground beetles so the slugs proliferated.

I once happened to see a toad sitting and eating sow bugs. Must have eaten 50 before I got bored. I don't think toads either are effective biocontrols, but ground beetles are effective on slugs.

Bob Randall
On Sunday, June 12, 2005, at 11:44 AM, Kevin Topek wrote:

I find that mulching with straw or dry feed hay around strawberries
discourages sow bugs. They like composting, moist mulch, but the dry
material is not to their liking. If you mulch with straw over the
decomposing mulch just prior to strawberry fruiting you get the maximum
benefit of the material for the longest time. It stays dry and does not
begin to break down for a couple of months. It also keeps the berries dry
and free of dirt. I think this is where the term straw-berry came from.

Kevin

----- Original Message -----
From: "Lisa in Oregon" <lisamaciver8@yahoo.com>
To: "permaculture" <permaculture@lists.ibiblio.org>
Sent: Sunday, June 12, 2005 11:13 AM
Subject: RE: [permaculture] Sow bugs eating the strawberries


I have a cordless vac I use mostly for earwigs, which are devastating
here for this few months in spring. I get the occasional sowbug and
slug with it, too... going out at night with one might be a way to
quickly reduce populations. I really only have sowbug problems inside
wall-o-waters or with plants that are right on the ground, like
emerging bean seedlings. Maybe humidity/darkness/air circulation.

You might read Steve Soloman's "Growing Vegetables West of the
Cascades." He specifically says mulch is the problem as in our climate
it allows buildup of earwigs and sowbugs; recommends not mulching, or
removing and composting mulch in early spring and reapplying fresh
mulch later. I haven't been able to not mulch, though.

Lisa in Ashland Oregon





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