[surbie100]

what is this please? I have lots in my plot...1cm long, orange one side, cream belly...are they a nasty or a helper?

[compostqueen]

It could be a leather jacket. The birds will eat them if you leave them on the soil.

[Salmo]

It is a wireworm. It is bad news as they will eat the roots of your seedlings and burrow into potatoes, carrots and any other root crops.

These are usually seen when turf is freshly cultivated to grow vegetables. They are the lavae of the click beetle and live in the soil for up to 3 years when they are about  3 cm long.

As time goes on you will see less of them.

[surbie100]

Thanks very much - my Gurgle searches for UK grubs and lavae didn't bring up anything I recognised.

It makes sense - this part of the plot has been grass and bramble/blackthorn for years. Will keep on squishing all I see in that case.

This forum is so brilliant! 

[agapanthus]

They are nasty little critters. You have a lovely row of 3" lettuce seedlings doing really well one day and the next all chopped down 

[sunshineband]

Easiest way of dealing with wireworms is to pick out every one you see when you are digging, and should you have a plant not doing well (or collapse, in the case of agapanthus' lettuce   ) that you dig and find the culprit before it does any further damage

If you have masses of them, planting a largish pieces of raw potato on sticks (so you can find them again ) and then digging them up every week will trap them so you can remove them.

Chicken rather like them to eat.. chooks scratching will find them for you if that is an option.

Don't worry, persistence will win the day