Topic: Killing Vine Weevil in strawberry pots

[Vinlander]

I've had extremely good results by drowning the buggers.

First I tested how long they last in a jar of water (they sink) - not much more than a few days.

Strawberries can survive being waterlogged for much longer than that!

In Spring and Autumn you simply have to find a container bigger than the pot and immerse the whole thing - a week is more than enough - much less if you use manure water that leaves no oxygen for the weevils.

It's particularly good for fancy strawberry pots where there is a big investment of time in getting the layers right - even if you overdo the drowning and kill the plants it's so much easier to replace them than rebuild the layers.

Hope this helps.

Cheers.

[green lily]

~I~ usually bet on 24-48 hrs doing it. Perhaps i'm too optimistic... ::)

[Vinlander]

~I~ usually bet on 24-48 hrs doing it. Perhaps i'm too optimistic... ::)

Maybe I'm too pessimistic? I've definitely managed to kill the weevils without killing the strawberry despite this, but strawberries are pretty tough.

If I was dealing with something that really couldn't stand waterlogging it would definitely be worth cutting it finer.

With a small number of vine cuttings it's actually easier to knock them out and wash the soil out.

Horses for courses.

Cheers.