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Author Topic: Galanthus Diggory - bugs  (Read 4847 times)

zorija

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Galanthus Diggory - bugs
« on: October 01, 2014, 12:46:29 PM »
Hi,
I've just been checking a particular spot in the garden to plant some rarer snowdrops. In this spot is Diggory, so to make
some extra room, Diggory had to be moved.

Well Diggory wasn't too happy and here's a pic. of the bulb.



Is this the small narcissus fly ?

Thanks for your feedback...

annew

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Re: Galanthus Diggory - bugs
« Reply #1 on: October 01, 2014, 07:39:42 PM »
 :-X Yes!
MINIONS! I need more minions!
Anne Wright, Dryad Nursery, Yorkshire, England

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zorija

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Re: Galanthus Diggory - bugs
« Reply #2 on: October 01, 2014, 07:58:17 PM »
Thanks annew for the confirmation. I suppose poor Diggory will now have to be burnt...

Matt T

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Re: Galanthus Diggory - bugs
« Reply #3 on: October 01, 2014, 08:07:46 PM »
I'd be inclined not to burn it, but instead extract the maggots, clean up the bulb, dust it with sulphur and pot it up. It's a long shot, but it might produce some small offset bulbils?
Matt Topsfield
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Maggi Young

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Re: Galanthus Diggory - bugs
« Reply #4 on: October 01, 2014, 08:10:18 PM »
I agree with Matt - we have had people tell of success with rescuing a bulb after such an attack in the past. Worth a try anyway with a chance the bulb may survive.
Margaret Young in Aberdeen, North East Scotland Zone 7 -ish!

Editor: International Rock Gardener e-magazine

zorija

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Re: Galanthus Diggory - bugs
« Reply #5 on: October 01, 2014, 09:02:17 PM »
Bulb cleaned up, only the top 2/3 left in tact i.e. no basal plate. Pesky little blighters still trying to hide in the tiniest of crevices.

Fungicide and sulphur applied. If this works then I'm twin scaling my one and only Morgana...

Thanks for the advice...

 

Hagen Engelmann

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Re: Galanthus Diggory - bugs
« Reply #6 on: October 02, 2014, 03:19:54 PM »
Yes Zorija, there is a little hope. I had same situations. And the rest of the bulb without basal plate created one or two new bulbs inside the older. Fingers crossed!
Hagen Engelmann Brandenburg/Germany (80m) http://www.engelmannii.de]

steve owen

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Re: Galanthus Diggory - bugs
« Reply #7 on: October 02, 2014, 06:47:52 PM »
I knocked out my pot of Elizabeth Harrison in June. M=I discovered that my group of two flowering bulbs and two offsets was down to one small bulb and a plump narcissus fly grub. An expensive loss! I immediately twinscaled the remaining bulb and wait in prayer.
NCPPG National Collection Holder for Galanthus
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Maggi Young

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Re: Galanthus Diggory - bugs
« Reply #8 on: October 02, 2014, 06:59:36 PM »
I knocked out my pot of Elizabeth Harrison in June. M=I discovered that my group of two flowering bulbs and two offsets was down to one small bulb and a plump narcissus fly grub. An expensive loss! I immediately twinscaled the remaining bulb and wait in prayer.

A nasty shock indeed. Good luck with the twin scales. 
It's never nice to lose plants or bulbs is it? 

I wonder if we feel even more anguish when the problem is the narcissus fly grub, because they make such a yucky mess?  Does make it hard to bear.
Margaret Young in Aberdeen, North East Scotland Zone 7 -ish!

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zorija

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Re: Galanthus Diggory - bugs
« Reply #9 on: October 02, 2014, 08:41:34 PM »
I suppose I need to be thankful it's only Diggory, although there's plenty of normal nivalis around.

Conversely to have Elizabeth devoured is a heart wrencher. I hope the fat grub suffered accordingly - hung, drawn and quartered would be too kind.

I'm surprised there are no nematodes akin to killing vine weevils.

I'll post back in the spring if there's any life in Diggory and thanks for the feedback...

Hagen Engelmann

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Re: Galanthus Diggory - bugs
« Reply #10 on: October 03, 2014, 06:02:53 AM »
Zorija, here is a sign of hope  :)
Hagen Engelmann Brandenburg/Germany (80m) http://www.engelmannii.de]

ichristie

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Re: Galanthus Diggory - bugs
« Reply #11 on: October 03, 2014, 08:19:03 AM »
Hello, we must always keep watch for these dreaded snowdrop eating monsters here is a picture, one of my specials which thankfully survived, cheers Ian the Christie kind
Ian ...the Christie kind...
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Hagen Engelmann

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Re: Galanthus Diggory - bugs
« Reply #12 on: October 03, 2014, 08:31:32 AM »
Ian, a sooo much better example !!!
Hagen Engelmann Brandenburg/Germany (80m) http://www.engelmannii.de]

Hagen Engelmann

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Re: Galanthus Diggory - bugs
« Reply #13 on: October 03, 2014, 08:37:17 AM »
My newest idea, I plant my snowdrops together with a bulb guard.  :D
Hagen Engelmann Brandenburg/Germany (80m) http://www.engelmannii.de]

Matt Bishop

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Re: Galanthus Diggory - bugs
« Reply #14 on: October 03, 2014, 02:34:54 PM »
Love the bulb guard, Hagen!

Thinking sideways slightly.......there's a highly effective method of preventing infestation of Narcissus Fly, large and small - shading.

All my pot-grown 'drops (except the year 1 twin-scales) are in a shade tunnel. There are even gaps at the corners where I've not yet got around to knitting together the shade material for a perfect cover. The proof? Everything gets knocked out and re-potted every year and my total count of Narcissus Fly grubs last year was six and this year eleven and that's on a total made up of the second and third year twin scales plus the odd pot of slow coaches that haven't yet flowered.

If providing shade is not an option then covering the pots in a suspended layer of fleece is effective and preventing physically the adults from laying their eggs next to dying foliage and the holes they leave giving access to the grubs. Knocking off the senescent foliage and covering the holes might also help.

Best wishes,

Matt

 


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