kathryn marsh wrote:
.. Earwigs
> certainly take great delight in munching flatworm eggs
kathryn
I was so interested in this observation, they are also reputed to eat
codling caterpillars and very likely dispose of other "baddies" too I
would guess. I think they (like a lot of the other creatures in gardens)
have a quite undeserved bad repution (unless, of course you are a dahlia
fancier!!)
One creature I feel very ambivalent about is the German wasp, which is
very common here and a great pest on fruit at this time of year.
However, when I was out in the garden yesterday I saw one just about to
attack a cabbage caterpillar, so even they are not all unhelpful.
Moira
--
Tony & Moira Ryan
Wainuiomata, New Zealand. (on the "Ring of Fire" in the SW Pacific).
Lat. 41:16S Long. 174:58E. Climate: Mediterranean/Temperate
Moira
I wouldn't trust an earwig with my seedlings even though they attack the
flatworm eggs. I suspect much wildlife is like the relationship between
plants and weeds - fine in the right place. But I can't say I've ever
deliberately killed an earwig - in fact the only things I've personally
slaughtered in the last year are scale insects and vine weevils - adults
and larvae. The one and only flatworm was two years ago
Of course I'd welcome a reason not to kill scale insects and vine weevils -
but I happen to be fond of citrus fruit and primulas
kathryn
kathryn marsh wrote:
kathryn
Vine weevil larvae appear in my glasshouse some years. There they have a
ravenously affectionate relationship chiefly with cyclamen corms, but on
one occasion they actually ate all the roots off an impatiens! I
definitely don't count them among my friends..
So far, touch wood, I have not had to deal with scale on citrus.
Moira
--
Tony & Moira Ryan
Wainuiomata, New Zealand. (on the "Ring of Fire" in the SW Pacific).
Lat. 41:16S Long. 174:58E. Climate: Mediterranean/Temperate
