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Strawberry moths
Green Magpie
Posts: 806
in Fruit & veg
I have what looks like a bumper crop of strawberries starting to ripen, but have noticed some tiny, whitish moths around the plants. Will these lay eggs/larvae that will destroy my crop? Is there anything I can do to deter them?
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Last edited: 06 June 2016 15:58:57
Hi Green Magpie. I think that you may be describing white fly. If thats the pest you may notice some mottling of the plant leaves. The strawberries may be unaffected and it would not be a good idea to use a bug spray as it is an edible crop but you could use a spray made with soap. If the strawberries are in a green house you can use some of those sticky yellow fly papers.
The moths are bigger than what I would recognise as white fly, they're about half the size of a household clothes moth. The moths also seem to be inhabiting the adjoining row of rocket, so I am not even sure now that they are specifically a strawberry pest. The plants are out of doors.
Hmm. Well I've done a bit of research and wonder if you recognise these. Fancy names for titchy critturs - Plutella porrectella or Mamestra brassicae.
Oooh, that's interesting, thank you! Definitely not the second one, but could be the first, and rocket is a brassica.. What's more, I now find that there are hundreds of them in various places - on gooseberry bushes, beans, and on the lawn. They have just appeared in the last day or two. They are very like the moths that chewed up our lawn last summer, but I don't know which plants they're actually looking for. It's all very odd, but I no longer think there's any risk to the strawberries (except from birds, mice and slugs!).
........ and humans!
Ah yes, the main damage to strawberries is done by the gardener in search of a snack!