[Schubunny]

Hello, bit new here hope I'm not covering old ground, well I expect I am but I hope you can bear with me!

I've been growing carrots in an old bath tub in the hopes that it will be too high for them to fly into. However today when I watered a bunch of black flies flew up and then landed on the side of the tub. They are quite small, only a few millimetres long. This didn't happen yesterday when I watered.

Have I the dreaded carrot fly? If so is there anything I can do or is it too late.

[sonnycbr]

I think it's a bit early for adult carrot fly and on the few occasions when they,ve gotten to my carrots I haven't actually seen them, only the damage they do. Why not drape a piece of fleece over the bathtub, the carrots will lift the fleece up as they grow.

[mumofstig]

This site http://www.gardening-naturally.com/acatalog/Cabbage_root_fly_and_carrot_fly_control.html

gives more details about the lifecycle, and dates of activity, for areas in the country.
It would help if you clicked on your user name and alter your profile to show your location, as it does help people answer your questions

If they have already laid eggs then there isn't much you can do, as far as I know.

[ranat22]

yea i had a lot of bother with carrot fly........i just put my carrots in a decent size container now and lift them about 2 feet of the ground...no more carrot fly problems now...make sure the container is deep enough...i use a barrel chopped in half and filled with a riddled soil/compost/silversand mixture

[DD.]

I doubt they are carrot fly, as implied earlier, it's very rare you see them.

I use enviromesh, it's difficult to lift 3 x 32' rows of carrots 2 feet in the air.

[sion01]

A friend of mine grows carrots (all his veg come to think of it) in beds that are surrounded by box hedging about a foot high and he swears he never gets carrot fly.

[Schubunny]

I think it's a bit early for adult carrot fly and on the few occasions when they,ve gotten to my carrots I haven't actually seen them, only the damage they do. Why not drape a piece of fleece over the bathtub, the carrots will lift the fleece up as they grow.

Thanks, I'll give that a go. Feeling a lot better now thanks. Got a bit of hope back!

This site http://www.gardening-naturally.com/acatalog/Cabbage_root_fly_and_carrot_fly_control.html

gives more details about the lifecycle, and dates of activity, for areas in the country.
It would help if you clicked on your user name and alter your profile to show your location, as it does help people answer your questions

If they have already laid eggs then there isn't much you can do, as far as I know.

Updated my profile.  I'm in Kent, it's been quite warm here but cooler the past few days.

yea i had a lot of bother with carrot fly........i just put my carrots in a decent size container now and lift them about 2 feet of the ground...no more carrot fly problems now...make sure the container is deep enough...i use a barrel chopped in half and filled with a riddled soil/compost/silversand mixture

The bathtub is about two foot off the ground, the thing is my plot is on a slope so it's two foot above the ground immediately around it but level with the ground a few foot up the slope.

Thank you all. 

[Gandan57]

If you turn the bath around so it`s facing down the slope that would solve the height all round problem, would it not?