DO WATCH OUT THE VW'S ARE ABOUT....

Oh Dd.....I hate them so much, I found 5 in a large begonia tuber i was overwintering, the grubs had burrowed their way inside the corm...I have started using the drench too...:>(

Thank you Daisy. Not so dotty methinks !

Thanks for that,Dd2..I,ve never had a problem with them so far,but there is always a first time ! I shall be diligently checking mine now..Sorry you have to get rid of your Strawberry plants..it does make you wonder how they managed to get in the pots though,at that height..

The adults are very good climbers. I found one half way up my kitchen wall two years back! Ugh! But I do think that I have imported most of mine from GCs and nurseries, where they must have a field day! The drench is not cheap, so I wonder if the pro.s have the funds to use it. They must use something sometimes you would think!

Ugh! Thanks for the warning, I've got some nematodes to try this year but was waiting for things to warm up a bit. Sounds like I should have a check while I'm waiting as I lost a couple of heucheras to them last year so I know they're around :(

I detest vine weevils, I used to grow bonsai but lost most of them to these grubs no matter how hard I tried to keep them at bay. It's heartbreaking to love a small tree you've trained for a few years then find the weevils have eaten all the roots and it's dead:((((

I have found some in my potted heucheras, horrible things - I fed them to the birds. What is the name of the drench please? Sounds like I should be using it. So far I have just repotted and sprayed with Provado.

Awfull things Angela and i will have to check my pots now its getting nicer weather and not so cold, infact iv lost a few potted plants as per usual with the bitter winter, started doing a bit of gardening slowly though after being ill i seem to still have less energy as usual, but Baz will help as much as he can, happy gardening to you both :o))) x

Hope that you are on the mend , Sandy , better take the vitamins !
Thans for the info Dd . ( For a minute there I thought you ment the wagons .....they have started here !)

Oh No.....I hate them, they are soooo creepy. Yuk. Will have to do a check now, thanks Dd.

Gee 19, it has the very imaginative name of....wait for it....'Vine Weevil Killer'. It does exactly what it says on the tin. You'd think they would have come up with something like 'Evil Weevil' wouldn't you!

this week has definitely been VW week....i have been potting things on all week in the nursery. as i turn out each pot its easy to see where they have been. if there isn't as much root as i think there should be i pull things about and sure enough the little blighters are there...squish squash and they are gone...i don't like using any of the chemicals recommended for the job as the stuff also kills off ladybirds and other friendly bugs. but now the pots have all been cleaned i will water on a weak mix of amilotox which is organic and puts off the adults from laying their eggs in my pots. it must help because i have only found a few amongst many hundreds of pots. good luck with your evil weevil hunting guys...

Thanks DD

Sandra, that might explain why I never see a ladybird! I drenched last year and am hoping to get away without it this year. I haven't seen any adults for a long time.

i was using provado until someone pointed this out to me..and i still found the evil weevil even when using it. so now i just take care to check all the pots in spring and do what i can to put the buggers off.

I have had 5 in the kitchen walls. Couldn't see where they were coming from, then I spotted an emerging female from the basil pot bought from the supermarket. funnily enough very little dead plant so are the growers using old compost?

Does washing used pots in disinfectant keep them away ?

Vine weevils come out at night and one clue is bitten notches in the leaves on plants. They cause no end of damage. A vine weevil insecticide is the only thing that works Diane. They don't fly and their grubs eat the roots of plants. When it gets warmer and the lilies start to emerge be on the lookout for the lily beetle. Bright orange, we squash them with a stone. They chew holes in the plants and make a real mess of them too.

I dont think I have ever seen a VW, this drench, do you just water it in to your pots as I have 16 large pots with various things in them, acres, magnolia, cherry tree. How do you use it? or should I wait to see if I get them.

It usually states on the packet how to give the insecticide to the plants and how much water to mix with it.

Had a look in my kitchen windowsill Basil pot. Couldnt see any strangers.

never had a problem with supermarket herbs before. But sorting pots today and I found 5 grubs in one of the pots.

Marion..if your pots have been planted up for over a year then the pot should be full of root...if its not its worth poking around to see why not....the VW eats roots so is very often the culprit...
i'm amazed you found them in supermarket herbs SBG.!!!

Thanks for your comments, I do find it odd that we never used to have this problem, so where did it start? it is only in the last 5 years that they have become a big problem, and I am convinced they come in the compost, or in plants potted in cheap compost, and like Sandra I hate having to use so many chemicals, but our garden would be ravaged if I didn't .......
I would not like to use it on my herbs Diane, or any thing edible come to that.....
SBG that is shocking, could they have crawled from another pot of plants?
We have taken to drenching all new potted plants now, that is all we can do, and as Lindak says the blessed lily beetle will soon be here, at least you can spot them a mile off, it's just catching the little beggars.
Louisa that is really heart breaking to lose Bonsai, I must check our one and only......
Just another day in the life of a gardener.....

I've just placed my bonsai into the garden. They have spent the winter under the car port. I've just kept them moist over the winter as they are mostly dormant, but didn't want them drying completely out. If too much water in the pots it can crack them with the winter we've had. The buds are swelling and with a bit of warmth they will burst forth into leaves.

Good idea Lindak have you some photos of your Bonsai, I am very fond of this type of gardening....

I'll take a few photos when they start to come out Dottie.

Look forward to that....thanks.

found a load in one of mine ... freacked lol xxx made oh emty it ...

Oh dear Cristina, they are such a pain we drench most pots now, just in case.....