Well as I write this my skin is still crawling where i just picked an earwig off my shoulder. Sure I find it endearing that they are named that because people thought they would crawl into your ears. Sure. Argh!!! No, it's too much. This bounty of artichokes is a joy it's true but killing the 40 odd earwigs that were making their homes under the outer leaves was not. Sigh, such are the joys of sharing a garden with the rest of the ecosystem. These fuckers eat my seedlings too. So it's nightly torch patrols again.
Still, all is full steam ahead here. I've been having some great germination successes with my new seedling house. All from waste. This is a hard rubbish set of shelves and plastic salvaged from the bins at Spotlight and a local factory. The front cover rolls up for access and hot days.
When the seedlings have their first leaves I've been potting them on as suggested by guru Linda - into boxes filled with 2 litre milk containers (tops and bottoms removed). The idea is that these will reduce transplant shock because there's no turning the plants upside down or loosening the roots - just slide the plastic up where it can act as a little pest guard for a few days before removal. We shall see folks. And report back.
ps - Lets see the earwigs try and crawl up these legs onto my seedling table. The legs sit in cans full of beer for them to drown in. Suckers.
Friday, October 19, 2007
of ears and sprouts
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I need to scavenge myself the makings of a seedling table for sure. I've been trying to do it low-tech in toilet roll middles & tupperware sitting on one of my usual benches but discovered to my horror that I had apparently created a total slug resort-n-buffet. D'you reckon the cans of beer trick would work just as well for slugs as earwigs? I've heard of beer traps for slugs & snails, so I imagine the cans would very quickly fill up with died-happy molluscs.
p.s I am SO GLAD I haven't had to deal with earwigs (yet). They are one creepy looking bug.
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