sprouts getting eaten

[deridder]

I have been sprouting seeds inside in the dark, and when they get their cotyledons i put them outside. So far every time i put a sprout out back into the woods it is gone the next day when i go back and check. I have one plant that about three weeks old and that has not been touched so far, but all the other plants i put out there get eaten. Could someone please tell me how i can stop animals from eating them, and why would they want to eat my sprouts when they have thousands of other plants they could be eating.

deridder Reviewed by deridder on 05-23-2006. sprouts getting eaten I have been sprouting seeds inside in the dark, and when they get their cotyledons i put them outside. So far every time i put a sprout out back into the woods it is gone the next day when i go back and check. I have one plant that about three weeks old and that has not been touched so far, but all the other plants i put out there get eaten. Could someone please tell me how i can stop animals from eating them, and why would they want to eat my sprouts when they have thousands of other plants Rating: 5

[xiaoxiao202]

Easy man urinate around your plants you know mark your territory if the eatings continue after the urinate that means its bugs! trust me this works just pee in a circle around the plants and well optional but i also but ciggarette buts in a circle around them (seems to keep most bugs out).

[kush07]

^^Agree

If your plants are entirely eaten away then that means you have deer or small woodland animals, like chipmunks and squirrels eating your plants. Ants are one of the biggest damage causers to your newly planted plants so watch out for them as well. Just mark your territory and observe.

Happy Toking :rasta:

[Sabrinaleena]

Here is what I learned on my other medicinal herbs that I've grown from seedlings. Earwigs are the worst when it comes to eating sprouts. They tend to go right for the smaller sprouts and will pretty much decimate them overnight.

Earwigs are also called pincher bugs, they're the ugly little black/brown things with the pincher on the tail end of them. They feed only at night, as well, so they're hard to find during the day. One thing that works for them that's organic is diatomaceous earth. Sprinkle that around the area of the sprouts. It basically acts as a thousand little knives that get into their exoskeleton. Diatomaceous earth works for other little critters, slugs and snails being other culprits.

Another thing you can try is earwig traps, which are reusable. Put some soapy water at the bottom of the trap. At the top a ripe piece of fruit (mango works best for mine for some reason), and they'll crawl into it to get to the fruit and drown in the soapy water.

Earwigs LOVE to eat herbs of almost any kind. Sage and basil being their favorite I've noticed. And they will most definitely crawl up into your potted herbs as well, so take care to tend to the potted ones.

Hope this helps