I don’t know you, but I grew up believing that father Longlegs was the most poisonous spiders in the world – – there was no way to direct him.
However, Entomologist Professor Adam Hart, who previously speaking with HuffPost UK, announced the first of the father Longlegs, in fact, in the UK, the term usually refers to crane flies).
The crane flies, “in no way poisonous,” he said, “in a difficult period of the year, insect feeding birds and mammals provide a major increase in energy”.
However, especially if you are confronted with an “invasion ,, they can create some problems in your garden.
How does Father Longlegs affect my garden?
Adult insects themselves do not do much for your grass or greens.
However, as Frankie Seamark shares on Instagram, some of its larvae are a different issue.
“The last thing you want [crane flies] To lay your eggs on your grass, ”he explained.
“In a few months, they go to the maggots called leather jackets and will feed the roots of your grass in winter and spring.”
Royal Garden Association (RHS) He said that they could be particularly abundant after a wet autumn, that “moist conditions support the survival of eggs and larvae” and could damage the grass, small plants and vegetables at the borders.
How can I detect leather jackets?
- Small, grayish maggots in your garden up to 3 cm
- Yellow-brown, dead grass patches
- Crows fed from leather jackets, holes in the place where the beaks of birds such as Magpies, Roxes and simple
- Dead seedlings and small plants.
Per rhsA good way to tell if there is a leather jacket invasion is to place a light -blocked material such as black polyethylene on a grass irrigated overnight.
If they have leather jackets the next morning, they should be on the grass surface under the lid ”.
What should I do if I notice leather jackets?
All leather jackets do not significantly affect your grass. Rhs says This only a “small number” actually causes damage, so if you are not disturbed by them, leave them alone – they are wondering for birds and other animals.
Experts suggest biological controls such as nematodes to help control leather jacket populations, unfortunately, they may not work on cold soils in winter, where grass damage may be more visible.
So it is important to move now, when the weather is still light, if you detect any damage to the leather jacket-to be effective, nematodes are well drained but moist and minimum 12 ° C requires soil at 12 ° C. society said.
“As a preventive measure, nematodes can be applied to leather jackets in early October in September.”
