Allotment Gardening Advice Help Chat

Growing => Grow Your Own => Topic started by: brokenglass on July 23, 2014, 12:07

Title: New Zealand Flat Worm
Post by: brokenglass on July 23, 2014, 12:07
We have very few, it often appears to be no, worms on the Site due to New Zealand Flat Worms.    Does anyone have any method for removing/reducing this pest other than catching and killing them individually.     It was the recent Topic concerning just leaving Green Manure for the worms to take under the soil which prompted me to ask this.     Without worms the Plots are more work for less out than I think they should be.
Title: Re: New Zealand Flat Worm
Post by: moose on July 23, 2014, 12:39
I think I read somewhere that when there are no ordinary worms left the NZ ones move out and our native one will come back but maybe that's my imagination or a dream from watching "Worms 1" or was it 2.








 I'd better go back to bed now.
Title: Re: New Zealand Flat Worm
Post by: solway cropper on July 23, 2014, 23:05
Do you have any moles on the site?
Title: Re: New Zealand Flat Worm
Post by: brokenglass on July 24, 2014, 08:48
No we don't have any Moles on site that could be due to the lack of worms as food not sure.      Flat Worms have the ability to enter a prolonged statis/hibernation, of up to two years when the worm populatioon drops down and the ability to "wake up" when they sense worm activity again.       

If anyone has any knowledge of a mthod to treat this pest I would be interested.
Title: Re: New Zealand Flat Worm
Post by: Aunt Sally on July 24, 2014, 19:48
This seems like good advice:

http://www.gardenersworld.com/how-to/problems/lawns/new-zealand-flatworms/408.html
Title: Re: New Zealand Flat Worm
Post by: brokenglass on July 25, 2014, 08:49
Many thanks Autie pity there doesn't appear to be a more profund solution other than kill the ones you find?     
Title: Re: New Zealand Flat Worm
Post by: savbo on July 25, 2014, 14:08
Did you hear on GQT that Ground Beetles are now predating on NZ Flatworms? So anything you can do to encourage them (rock/log piles etc) may help. I had them in our Derry garden (vile things) and we had very few earthworms.

savbo