my poor swede

[karrot]

:'( Help i love Swede, picked some yesterday and they felt hollow. peeled and cut in half, inside was a family of baby wood lice. Totally put me off and threw in compost. please tell me that was a one off because all remaining Swede are covered in holes too :o

[karrot]

[colleenemp]

No one can predict that!
Get someone less squeemish to check them!!!
I feel your pain  :'(

[karrot]

:)I'm not a wimp honest  ;D. I can wave a worm around at my children like the best of them. Just didn't really expect a hole beastie family crawling over my chopping board :o I'll just get my OH to cook ;)

[redimp]

They must have been too far gone.  I cannot imagine that the woodlice would have been quite so enthusiastic otherwise.

[karrot]

Oh do you think thats it, i've left them this long because i planted too close together and not very big. shell i just get rid? :'(

[redimp]

I wouldn't get rid without making sure - especially not on my say so.  :)

[timmyc]

I had woodlice in all sorts of things - including all my Swede - however I don't think it was them that did the damage - I'm pretty sure they are living in the nice warm recesses made after slugs have had their go at them first - they may eat a bit but I don't think they do that much - too small!!

[karrot]

Haven't actually tasted one yet, will test out on my OH, if he keels over with stomach ache I'll bin ;D.
How do you know when you've left something too long?

[Sarah-b]

hi Karrot,
I'm with Timmy on that one. I reckon the slugs have a go and then the woodlice move in. And I also reckon that woodlice are a bit of a plague in Chesham - we find them all over the place - not just at the allotment!!
Now, had you thinned those swedes out a little, you may have found that they grew quicker than the slugs and woodlice could damage them and then on the chopping board it would have been a quick job to chop of the damage and shove it in the bin - oh well there is always next year...

sb

[carloso]

i think theres a way for you to get over this

Lokk at the bugs been extra protien!! a full veg and meat meal in one !!!

you may have cracked 3rd world starvation and all down to your swede

well done

carl

hee hee  ;)

[karrot]

Thanks Sarah i hear an "i told you so" ringing in my ears, visions of you standing over said swede saying "i would thin those out if i were you" comming back ;D.
But didn't have the heart.


Carloso thankyou so much for putting that thought into my head. Nightmares of eating woodlice tonight me thinks :)

[carloso]

Dear Karrot

soz   :-\  hope you slept well  :)

Carl

[keef]

I had loads of maggoty larve in mine  :o but they had only really nibbled the skin so they were still fine to use, did'nt tell the missus about the maggots though... :-X

No 100% sure what they were though?

[Derekthefox]

I will remember to shake my swede before using ... if there is a rattling sound ...  ;D

Derekthefox :D

[karrot]

OH MY GOD maggots MAGGOTS...  :o
I'm soo glad i didn't come across any of those

[undercarriage plan]

Mine just rotted! Second year running!! Will I be trying suede again? Yup! Ever the glutton for punishment, and Carl, get my protein from eating all the carrot fly larvae.. ;D ;D ;D ;)
Lottie

[Derekthefox]

Ha ha Karrot, my wife has a morbid fear of maggots too ...

Derekthefox :D

[karrot]

"Morbid fear" sums it up well Derek, OH is a keen fisherman too (when time allows) guess i won't be the best little helper ;D

[Derekthefox]

Yes it has been a problem for my wife too, she is a nurse, and maggots have been reintroduced as an effective means of wound management for necrotic tissue ...

Derekthefox :D

[jennym]

I had loads of maggoty larve in mine  :o but they had only really nibbled the skin so they were still fine to use, did'nt tell the missus about the maggots though... :-X
No 100% sure what they were though?

Could have been cabbage root fly, the second generation larvae damage the root like this. Or moth caterpillars, these feed on the lower leaves then drop to the soil and feed on the roots. If it's a serious probelm you can try covering them with Enviromesh, or horticultural fleece.