Grow Your Own Magazine

this is such a good article, I've reproduced it here:

The pea moth, Cydia nigricana, is 6mm long with a 12mm wingspan. It is an olive brown colour with black and white bars on the front edge of its forewings and long antennae. Between 5 and 11 days after adult moths emerge they lay flat transparent/white eggs (size of a pinhead) on the leaves, pods, flowers or stems of pea plants.

After 1 to 3 weeks (depending on temperature) minute yellowish/white caterpillars with dark heads emerge. These migrate to and bore into young pea pods. Larval development lasts from 18 to 30 days after which the fully grown caterpillars (12mm) bore back out through pod walls and drop to the ground to spin cocoons containing particles of soil. They hibernate over the winter in these cocoons.

There is one generation per year. Overwintering pea moths pupate inside cocoons and emerge to look for pea crops from the end of May to the end of July coinciding
with flowering time.
Each caterpillar can damage up to 6 seeds although usually damage only 1 or 2. They chew irregularly shaped holes in the peas contaminating them with frass (faeces). Attacked pods may yellow and ripen prematurely but
damage is generally not detected until the pea pods are shelled revealing the frass, silk and sometimes the larva also. Damage is easily distinguished from that of the pea weevil, which makes smooth, round holes in peas.

Pea moths attack field and garden peas along with sweet peas and vetch. Damage from pea moth is a big problem for commercial growers but gardeners can easily discard the damaged peas when shelling pods.

Levels of infestation can be minimised by
✲ planting early or late to miss the flight period of the pea moth and don’t delay harvesting peas.
✲ cover peas with horticultural fleece to keep moths off the growing crop.
✲ pea moth pheromone traps; they interfere with normal mating signals reducing their ability to mate successfully (available from suppliers such as defenders Defenders - Safe Effective Natural Biologist Pest Control for Gardeners or 01233 813121).
✲ if infestation is severe avoid planting any pea moth hosts (including sweet peas and vetch) for a couple of years. This is much more difficult on an allotment where neighbours will probably grow these plants.
http://www.pan-uk.org/Info/Gardening...ne2005Tips.pdf

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~ What do I think of Western civilisation? I think it would be a very good idea ~ Gandhi

my grandad used to put egg shells on sticks amongst his peas to stop pea moths, apparently the shape of them used to confuse them

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Kernow rag nevra http://www.cornishnotenglish.com/

The difference between genius and stupidity is that genius has its limits
Albert Einstein

Just be ordinary and nothing special. Eat your food, move your bowels, pass water and when your'e tired go and lie down. The ignorant will laugh at me, but the wise will understand
Bruce Lee

I'm bumping this Thread for HeyWayne. xx

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~ What do I think of Western civilisation? I think it would be a very good idea ~ Gandhi

Cheers TS, readit. I might opt for pheremone if it gets worser.

Thanks my dear.

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A simple dude trying to grow veg.

http://haywayne.blogspot.com/ - Minor update - 10th November

http://tickers.baby-gaga.com/p/dev036pr___.png

Save your money Wayne. Barriers are totally affective and much cheaper (esp. if you use Voile net curtains like what I do)

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~ What do I think of Western civilisation? I think it would be a very good idea ~ Gandhi

I was only gonna buy some of that cheap pheremone aftershave stuff from Ann Summers - it's bad enough to keep most pests away.

Voila curtains are expensive where I've seen them - even as material in Dunelm.

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A simple dude trying to grow veg.

http://haywayne.blogspot.com/ - Minor update - 10th November

http://tickers.baby-gaga.com/p/dev036pr___.png

Charity shops. Surely you have them even down south?

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Earth laughs in flowers. Ralph Waldo Emerson

www.vegheaven.blogspot.com

Updated November 17th - The Big Dig

Voile is 99p a metre on eBay: 40" DROP WHITE VOILE SOLD BY THE METER on eBay, also, Net Curtains, Curtains Blinds, Home Garden (end time 13-Aug-08 17:29:22 BST)

actually debris netting is cheaper, and wider, 68p a metre. DEBRIS NETTING 2m x 50m GREEN, SCAFFOLD / GARDEN NET on eBay, also, Scaffolding Ladders, Building Materials Supplies, Business, Office Industrial (end time 19-Jul-08 13:13:05 BST)

__________________
~ What do I think of Western civilisation? I think it would be a very good idea ~ Gandhi