We are new to Dave's Garden, and new to gardening in general. We live in the Tampa Bay area of Florida and are growing a New Zealand spinach. I have heard this type of spinach grows well in the Florida summer heat. The spinach is in a container box on our porch, but some little critters are having a feast out of my spinach! What is this? worm? snail? and what can I do to prevent them from coming back? Obviously, I need to cut off all of my leafs and start over. Thanks for your help!
you can see the nasty little buggers in your picture. it's some kind of worm, possibly sawfly larvae or army worm. you need to get some spinosad and spray them. it's organic, won't hurt you but they ingest it and die. it will take a few days to wipe them out so don't be alarmed if you still see some after you spray.
check your local ace and see if they carry Fertilome Borer, Bagworm and Tent Cat spray. it's a concentrate in a bottle that you mix with water. will also kill the big lubber grasshoppers so fond of our florida climate and plants.
should have said, spray the plants, not the worms. it needs to get all over the leaf.
This message was edited Jun 18, 2010 1:41 PM
Be sure to spray the underside as well as the top side. Also, do it in the early morning or evening. That's when the insects do most of their damage.
