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Which Pest ate all my Beetroots?

gardpbgardpb Posts: 4
in Problem solving

I have grown beetroot for many years, never before have they been eaten more than minor damage by slugs. In 2014 there was no crop left for the family to eat.

Which pest would have caused this loss? And what can I do in 2015 to prevent a recurrence?

Posts

  • DovefromaboveDovefromabove Posts: 88,136

    Very hungry slugs?  Voles?  Rats? 

    The weather was very dry last summer/autumn - if rodents/small mammals were thirsty I can imagine that juicy roots would have been very welcome image


    Gardening in Central Norfolk on improved gritty moraine over chalk ... free-draining.





  • DovefromaboveDovefromabove Posts: 88,136

    The poster said he was growing beetroot Verdun, not doughnuts image


    Gardening in Central Norfolk on improved gritty moraine over chalk ... free-draining.





  • TopbirdTopbird Posts: 8,352

    I grow beetroot in raised beds and regularly lose a few each year to the resident voles who eat them from below. It looks as though the beetroot is still in place & fine - till I go to lift it and it just comes away as a shell around the stalk. image Same thing with carrots.

    A bit annoying - but there are actually still enough left for me so I don't mind tooooooo much....

    Heaven is ... sitting in the garden with a G&T and a cat while watching the sun go down
  • Joyce GoldenlilyJoyce Goldenlily Posts: 2,933

    Have a look aroiund the bed where your beetroot were supposed to be growing. If there are any very small holes, about the circumference of a pencil it will be tiny brown furries, voles, field mice, shrews etc.

    Beetroot are nice and sweet so very attrractive to them.

  • a1154a1154 Posts: 1,108

    I had the same thing and it was short tailed voles. Ate beetroot, but left all the carrots.  They are quite cute though. 

  • bazabaza Posts: 670

    Rats ate 95% of mine plus my neighbours allotment and also his neighbours allotment rats ate his in fact a lot of people had their crops ruined .

    This happened late september and i was told that the local farmer had moved a lot of cattle feed and disturbed the rats so therefore they got hungry and went on the rampage eating everything and anything whether this is true i'm not sure .

    Its a shame this has happened because you think they are growing great until you take 1 out of the ground half eaten.

    I'll be putting traps down all over my garden when the season starts this year .I don't want this happening again.

    Hope this helps

    Baz

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