its happening AGAIN! everything is getting eaten up

[sheeshshe]

this happens every spring when I put things in the ground. it gets eaten up. usually it is the green beans, but since those aren't up yet, it is the cucumbers becoming victim. completely chomped nothing left of some of them IDK what to do about it other than trying Neem oil. I've never tried it for this so I hope it helps. I jsut don't want to lose them all and have to replant 5 times like I do every year. I'd rather just plant it that one time!

fill me in, do I reapply neem oil every day? or jsut when it rains? will it keep ants away? ants are the ones that chomp the seedlings in my place

they don't bother the tomatoes, but always the greenbeans and cucumbers.

[Handsomeryan]

You might try a Permethrin based spray. Commonly sold by Bonide under the name "Eight" it works well to control a number of chomping insects (including ants) and it is labeled for use on a lot of edibles with a very short pre-harvest interval.

Unlike the neem oil there is a lower chance for burning the foliage of your plants (although you should still observe good spray practices and avoid spraying in the heat of the day or when temperatures exceed about 75°F)

It also has some residual effect so you not only kill the pests that are hit directly with the spray but keep the pests from returning for a period of time.

Note: While permethrin has a very low toxicity in mammals I believe cats are sensitive to it so care should be taken when spraying if you have cats.

[hendi_alex]

Deer love cucumbers and beans. If chomped to the ground, is likely deer or rabbit IMO. Some motion deterrents may work, but some kind of barrier is best. Rabbits are easily discouraged with an 18 inch chicken wire enclosure. Deer are a different matter, as they go over a 5 foot fence like nothing. It takes at least six to 8 feet to discourage them or perhaps put a fence inside a fence, or go with an entire bed enclosure.

[sheeshshe]

it was the leaves chomped off. I don't think it is a deer or a rabbit. as each day it is one plant. and it is just the leaves and not the stems. plus I have a fence around it. I'd think if it were deer they'd take more than 1 each night/day LOL maybe it is a slug. oh IDK!

[applestar]

Definitely first thing to do is to positively ID the culprit(s)

I honestly don't think ants are likely unless you have the tropical leaf cutter ants in Maine. Early spring smaller pests that can eat up seedlings are usually snails and slugs -- especially carrots, lettuce, spinach, peas, beans, but there are usually some parts of the seedling left in place. Try leaving a scooped out grapefruit or eaten orange wedge and check just after dawn. Once things warm up a bit, caterpillars on one kind or another are suspect.

If the entire plants are gone, then I would suspect animals -- anything from mice/voles and chipmunks and birds for small brassica seedlings and pea, bean, sunflower and corn seedlings, then rabbits and deer. Once it gets hot enough, groundHOGS.

In my garden, knee-high chickenwire/rabbit fence is an absolute minimum requirement.

[sheeshshe]

it is probably the slugs, but I've watched ants eat them though before. people usually don't believe me though everyone thinks I'm crazy. but I've sat there and I've watched them go up the plant chomp a bite and go down the plant with it. a whole swarm of ants. they're weird ants I guess. but in this case it is probably the slugs. I put toilet paper rolls around them hoping it would deter the bugs but it didn't. they haven't touched the lettuce or anything else. just the cucumbers this far. and next it'll be the beans when they come up. will the neem help this problem? should I apply it this evening?

[sheeshshe]

I just had a thought. I saw one of those grey above ground cut worms in the area my cucumber plants are in. I wonder if that is what is eating them. I also had a thought, I should put some soda bottles over them until they get bigger!

[rainbowgardener]

Still really need to identify the culprit! Neem oil works very well against a lot of kinds of insects (also is fungicidal). But I don't think the Neem would accomplish anything if it is slugs eating your plants. If it is slugs or some other kinds of crawling things, diatomaceous earth will help. For many kinds of soft bodied insects like aphids, garlic-pepper spray works well.

Soda bottle could easily cook your plants inside it and won't help at all if it is something coming up from the soil.

[cynthia_h]

You must identify the culprits first. Neem is USELESS against slugs, snails, and the like. Also USELESS against rabbits, groundhogs, voles, moles, gophers, and other mammals.

Neem will KILL honeybees and other pollinators, so the timing of your applications of Neem is important.

Cutworms will cut the plant off at ground level, leaving the remains lying flat on the ground. Paper-towel tubes and the like will protect young seedlings from cutworms.

Cynthia H.
Sunset Zone 17, USDA Zone 9

[sheeshshe]

but isn't there that grey crawling cutworm that cuts off higher? I thought for sure I read about that on here before...

[applestar]

Yes, there are pests called Climbing Cutworms. In my garden I don't see them until the peppers and tomatoes start fruiting and ripening though, and that's what I see them eating. They have similar grayish curled in a C bodies as the ground level ones but the ones I get have black triangles in a pattern -- kind of snake-like. I posted some photos before....

[sheeshshe]

well, I had also seen one in my cold frame one day when I was transplanting some seedlings. you'd thing that was the climbing type right? it was in my tray.

[tedln]

I think it would be very interesting if you have a variety or species of leaf cutter ants in Maine. Your description is very accurate for leaf cutter ants. Check with your county extension agent.

The Texas Leaf Cutter is a large red ant. They typically select a plant or two and totally cut up and remove all the leaves in a couple of days. A few years ago, I noticed them on a large jalapeno pepper plant. They totally stripped the plant by setting up an assembly line cutting the leaves, hauling the pieces to their nest, and returning to the plant. They construct a chamber in their nest where they store the leaf parts. A fungus grows on the leaf mulch and they consume the nectar from the fungus. They don't have a stinger, but they can create a lot of pain if they cut your skin with the same pincher mandibles they use to cut the leaves.

I suppose any pesticide good for ants would kill them. I found them so interesting, I just let them have a few plants. While you may kill the ants attacking your plant, you will find it difficult to kill the entire den. They build their dens up to eight feet deep with multiple chambers. Diatomaceous earth should work well because they track it into their den and it slowly abraids their exoskeleton.

Ted

[sheeshshe]

well, I googled and it seems like there shouldn't be any in my area as they're more of a tropical species... so, who knows!

I went out and examined the cucumbers again and there was one that only half of the leaf was eaten away on one side. I covered it for the night. I wish I had more bottles to cover them for the night. can't cover them all its got to be slugs. ya think?

poor cucumbers will never grow if they continue to get eaten like this.

[BP]

I have two suggestions. Since most are thinking you have an animal problem, get a trailcam. If anyone doesn't know what that is, it's a motion detecting camera that straps to a tree or pole and takes photos when something passes by.
Since you believe it is bugs, go out a couple times a night with a flashlight and catch them in the act.

[dirtyfingers]

We also use soda bottles to start the seedlings in the ground to keep those pesky birds off of the youngsters.

We also found that wrapping foil around the stem of seedlings prevents bugs and stuff from eating them at ground level, especially the cucumbers.