strong>Carrot fly (latin name – Psila rosae) is a disaster, and it is worth knowing how to avoid it.
The carrot flies lay eggs in cracks of the soil, near carrots & parsnips. The eggs hatch
out into maggots which enter the roots & feed on them. They ruin the crop.
* Carrot flies are not strong fliers, so a windswept site is an
advantage.
* Grow a resistant strain.
* Sow seeds thinly, to avoid having to thin the carrots out, as the
fly is attracted by the smell
* weed & pull carrots on a dry, still evening so the scent of the
carrot does not reach the fly
* use a net to keep the fly off the carrot
net
*use a vertical barrier, at least 70cm high, of fine mesh or
polythene around the crop
Biological pest control involves the release of organisms that attack pests.
The aim of biological control is to shift the balance of competition
between the pest and the crop in favour of the crop and against the pest.
The biological control agent, guinea fowl & lacewings in our case, may
not necessarily kill all the pests but should, at least, reduce their
vigour and competitive ability. From a practical point of view the
organism or agent should prevent the pest reproducing.
Free range Guinea fowl constantly roam the vegetable garden looking for
insects.
winter-guinea
They keep the pests down to an acceptable level, & don’t seem to eat
the vegetables.
guinea2
The Guinea fowl are a problem at sowing time as they like to have dust
baths in dry soil. To get over this we cover the seed rows with various
cloches
cloche
The lacewings prey on aphids and other soft bodied insects. We have a
lacewing breeding box in the veg garden, filled with straw, which will
encourage them to breed.
lacewing
They will be perfectly sited to take all the soft insects off the
vegetables. How they will manage with the guinea fowl remains to be seen
lacewingsite
Carrot fly (latin name – Psila rosae) is a disaster.
The carrot flies lay eggs in cracks of the soil, near carrots & parsnips. The eggs hatch out into maggots which enter the roots & feed on them. They ruin the crop.
* Carrot flies are not strong fliers, so a windswept site is an
advantage.
* Grow a resistant strain.
* Sow seeds thinly, to avoid having to thin the carrots out, as the
fly is attracted by the smell
* weed & pull carrots on a dry, still evening so the scent of the
carrot does not reach the fly
* use a net to keep the fly off the carrot
carrotnet
* use a vertical barrier, at least 70cm high, of fine mesh or
polythene around the crop
