Discussions

A small thick 1 inch grub like worm has chewed through my potatoes and some of my carrots. I don’t know what it is or how it got into my garden but this is the second year in a row this has happened. For the previous 15 years I had no such issue. Any ideas what this worm is? How do I get rid of it? It’s about an inch long, white and thick. Almost like a larvae grub type look. Very disappointing to discover this after watering and weeding all summer.

Didn’t think I hit send. Sorry.

Had them. If they're the ones I thought I had , they're Japanese beetle larvae. From what I read is the way to get rid of them is for a couple years not to plant stuff that grows underground for a couple years.

to hear about your garden .  
but it just struck me funny going to the garden to eat worms just came to me .  
 
best of luck with next year's garden  
 
Edited by rubyred, 2020-08-20 18:46:15

The best natural way to reduce issues is to practice a three or four year crop rotation, the longer the better. In my garden I rotate root crops, brassicas and others (beans, peas etc) through a three year rotation .

Rubyred you must be smoking some good stuff to find that funny. Had to re read my post to see if I said I went to the garden to eat worms. Unfortunately there’s not too much funny with it for me as I am a senior with a disability just trying to enjoy some fresh garden produce . Kind of a wasted time to have all that effort go for nothing, All I would like to know is what kind of insect am I dealing with here and how to get rid of it for next year.

They also took quite a few chomps out of my potatoes. I never had an issue with them prior to this year, so I never had a chance to try any remedies other than digging them up with the potatoes and throwing them in a bucket of soapy water. Allegedly there are garden nematodes you can buy that you mix with water and pour on the soil that will prey on the larvae, as a biological pesticide.  
 
I'm not sure how effective crop rotation would be. Junebugs are those big fat brown beetles that fly and lay their eggs wherever is best for their larvae to survive. Usually they eat the roots of grass but if I was them I would also go for the good stuff.

Thank you Millenial for that reply. That’s the information I was looking for now I can do something about it.

to have a disability I get it I needed a little pick me up it made me giggle it's not the end of the world try again next year that's all you can do .

Well rubyred I don’t think you get it at all but don’t worry about it. Have a nice day.

We had a similar problem many years ago on our garden on the farm. You either have wireworms or cut worms. At that time MacLeods sold a powder that you worked into the soil. We've never had a problem since. I'm sure if you go to one of the garden centres they will have something you can use which will prevent the problem from occurring next year.

What they are describing are White Grubs. We have always had them. They are usually in the grass but they do like potatoes. They are like a previous poster said the larvae of the Japanese beetle (June Bugs)

Ok now I know what you are describing. Japanese beetle larvae aka June Bugs. They are the ones that make that buzzing sound similar to cicadas and I’ve been hearing that most of the summer. Now that I know what I’m dealing with I will try to find a way to eliminate them. Thanks to all with the helpful info. At least they didn’t get my tomatoes and beans.

I have noticed them the past couple years in the dirt when I cultivate or weed the garden. I have always thought they were supremely gross and creepy, but this is the first year for me where things got personal.  
 
I've never had a problem with the adult beetles as a pest, even though my research has led me to understand that even the adults can cause problems in a garden. I'm not sure I could emotionally cope if the adults started munching on leaves in my garden, so it's the end of the line for the grubs.