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Vine wevels

chrissie.beavischrissie.beavis Posts: 6
in Problem solving
I have recently moved to a new home with a very large garden.. with some raised beds I have found the dreaded vine wevel grubs in one of the beds what can I do to stop the horrible things spreading, I’ve dug over the other beds and there is no sign of them there .. advice please 
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  • ShepsSheps Posts: 2,236
    I suppose the easiest way is to water in some nematodes once the soil warms up.

    See here...

    https://www.gardening-naturally.com/nematodes-pest-control/nematodes?gclid=CjwKCAjw_YShBhAiEiwAMomsEPWkjcGHmstz7CPGnYtEi8K-BDA1yS5uBryi7YW3JdTLAyKi5nvGehoClyAQAvD_BwE

    Mine are on order for the first week of May.
  • PalustrisPalustris Posts: 4,307
    Sadly they are likely to be  throughout the garden. The nematodes work in areas where they are contained, but in the general garden, they will only reduce the problem. Eternal vigilance is the best advice, go out with a torch at night and find the adults. Satisfying crunch when you stand on them.
  • bédébédé Posts: 3,095
    edited March 2023
    Palustris said:
     go out with a torch at night and find the adults. 
      Look for slugs at the same time.  ... But you won't get any sleep.

    In the confines of a small greenhouse with everything in pots, I rarely find and adult.   And one adult can lay a lot of eggs.

    BTW.  Wine weevils are all female and reproduce asexually.  A trans dream?
     location: Surrey Hills, England, ex-woodland acidic sand.
    "Have nothing in your garden that you don't know to be useful, or believe to be beautiful."
  • chrissie.beavischrissie.beavis Posts: 6
    Thank you for all your replies .. I’ve ordered the recommended solution it might help 
  • LynLyn Posts: 23,190
    You need to use the nematodes twice a year,  Spring and Autumn,  order again around the end of September. 
    Gardening on the wild, windy west side of Dartmoor. 

  • FairygirlFairygirl Posts: 55,117
    The soil temps also have to be suitable for them to be effective, so it'll depend where you are @chrissie.beavis   :)
    It's a place where beautiful isn't enough of a word....



    I live in west central Scotland - not where that photo is...
  • wild edgeswild edges Posts: 10,497
    It could just be me but my garden is infested with weevils and yet the only plants that are affected seem to be the ones in pots. My theory is that in the open ground there are already many predators that control their numbers and the plants are better able to weather attacks on their roots. I've also noticed that spiders love eating adult weevils so a garden that's healthy for insects is worse for weevils. Make sure to have plenty of lurking places for creepy crawlies, log and stone piles etc, and boost the ecosystem by being less tidy and you should get fewer pests in general.
    If you can keep your head, while those around you are losing theirs, you may not have grasped the seriousness of the situation.
  • LynLyn Posts: 23,190
    Agreed @wild edges.  I’ve seen lots of chewed leaves but the grubs don’t seem to make any difference,  it’s the pots,  when I potted up my strawberry plants last year I counted more than 200 grubs in the pots.   Birds had a lovely feast. 
    They’d be too expensive to put on the open garden. 
    Gardening on the wild, windy west side of Dartmoor. 

  • bédébédé Posts: 3,095
    1.  Is there a certain depth that VWs don't go but outdoor plants' roots do?

    2.  The fact that the OP only found weevils in one of severlal raised beds suggests that old pot plant compost had be added to one bed.
     location: Surrey Hills, England, ex-woodland acidic sand.
    "Have nothing in your garden that you don't know to be useful, or believe to be beautiful."
  • PalustrisPalustris Posts: 4,307
    The grubs eat in a straight line in the garden, but are forced round and round in a pot so eating all of the roots. Also it is not really in a grubs interest to kill plants if you think about it or there would be nothing left for the next generation of weevils. It is the confinement in a container which is the problem. Even my very, very prone Auriculas have managed out in the garden where they were destroyed in pots.
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