[boddy]

HI

About six of my potato's have been munched leaving only a few leaves since yesterday, that's a lot of leaves they were big. The others look untouched so far. I've sprayed the whole lot with a garlic spray to try and put off whatever thinks they are tasty. Surely if it were slugs it would be a few leaves of all the plants instead of some next to each other? Any thoughts - help!

[mumofstig]

wabbits 

[Silkworm]

There have been rare occasions when deaths head hawk moth larva have decimated potato crops,
Look around can you see any frass/droppings or caterpillars?


😊😊😊 Silky

[boddy]

haven't had a chance to go back and look for caterpillars or droppings. Hopefully it is rabbits and they'll hop off elsewhere! Will take the dogs up tomorrow after work to scare any off.

[pigguns]

Saw 2 slugs on one plant today and it was shredded, but nearby ones were untouched-maybe variety matters?

[Wavertree Red]

Exactly the same has just happened to us. 12 inch plants almost completely stripped.  Never happened before. On closer inspection I noticed the chewed leaves had slug trails all over them. Not a fan of using pellets but sprinkled some around a couple of spud plants and returned to find a dead slug fest.  I don't like having to kill any living thing but they're getting out of hand and most other forms of protection are either an old wives tail or have very minimal effect.

The mild winter has helped the slugs no end.  Try and move any clutter from around your beds, pots, bricks as it may encourage them to relocate.

[JayG]

I had one seed potato left after planting the others out in my main bed, so put it in a pile of upturned turves on a patio area near the hedge to see whether it would produce a few extra spuds there.

It grew pretty well, but is now fairly shredded - my garden is surrounded by privet (aka slug hotels  ) and also has plenty of shrubs and other plants which provide lots of shelter/breeding grounds.

As I've mentioned previously, there are extraordinary numbers of slugs and snails here this year after the wet, mild winter - luckily my main veg growing area has path surrounds so it's relatively easy to intercept the blighters en route to their dinner before they get to it. My two rows of spuds have very little slug damage to the foliage so far, but clearly if there are enough of them they can do considerable damage even to strong-growing plants like potatoes.

[boddy]

Don't think it's slugs on further inspection. I wonder if it might be my resident partridge that is sitting on 10 eggs - don't mind so much if it's her. The very bottom leaves appear untouched as if eaten form above and I think it's just one variety of the lates that's been eaten. I wonder if I left some greens near her nesting area of she might leave them alone? (if she's the culprit!)