Topic: Something's eating my basil...

[greenstar]

...and it ain't me!  I've sowed Basil in pot on the windowsill, but as the seedlings appear, they are eaten.  I haven't seen anything on them.  What could it be?  Have found a few woodlice lurking in the same room, could it be them?  Whatever it is it's not eating the coriander or the parsley in adjacent pots.

I should mention at this point that I have a three year old who is eating the coriander and parsley, but the modus operandi seems different with the basil  - just the leaves have gone, rather than the whole seedling being ripped out and chewed, accompanied by the "yummy in my tummy" song.

[sandersj89]

My bet would be a slug, woodlice normally only eat dead/decaying matter.

Jerry

[greyhound]

I reckon a slug too, they looooove basil.  I get slugs coming into my kitchen overnight, see the trails in the morning.  Trapped some with beer, but others get in.

Anyway - I had a big pot of basil outside and managed to keep the slugs off it by putting some Velcro tape around the outside of the pot.  They didn't like that up 'em.

[greenstar]

Don't think it's a slug - no trail and I live two floors up.  We occasionally find weird black/brown beetles hanging around in the morning.  Don't know what they are, but the beast has had a go at my cobea seedlings too.  It only seems to go for leaves that are very close to the compost.  Think I'll have to stake out the joint tonight, see what comes along and batter it!

[telboy]

Interesting.
I would go for a slug. They will climb for basil! Check under/around your planting jobbies - they are devious baskets!

[teresa]

Vine weevil are about watch out and kill them. They come out of the pots in the morning after laying thier eggs which will eat all your roots of plants.

[teresa]

Does it look like this?

http://www.rhs.org.uk/advice/profiles0600/vineweevil.asp

[greenstar]

Yup, that's it.  Is that bad?  How good are they at breeding?

[teresa]

Oh dear they are the worst bugs on this earth,
If you see one kill it squash it with the back of a good metal spoon you will hear a crunch. hard shell.
eggs turn into grubs white with a brown spot on them.
They eat all the roots of the plant and by the time you notice the plant wilt too late the plant will die.
one auldut can lay 1.000 eggs a year or so.
I water all pot plants inside and out with Provado wine weevil killer twice a year spring and autumn.
If you can repot the seedlings do so and bin the compost they were in.
The auldts are the ones eating the leaves they will do it to garden plants as well.

[greenstar]

Aaaaaagh!  :'(

So my usual tactic of ignoring it hoping it will go away isn't going to work here?  I had a quick scoot about looking for organic solutions and have decided to go with the vigilante approach - seems easiest as the basil is growing on my living room windowsill.  I found one dead adult - does this mean that it has laid its eggs and croaked, do you think?  Most things don't die naturally until they've reproduced.  Don't think it died of hunger cos it would have been full of my basil! 

Think I'll just start again...  :-\

[saddad]

There is a biological control (Nematode) which is really good at killing the grubs which are the real pits!