Earwigs: identify, prevent, control

Most active in warm weather through spring and summer, September to February.

Earwigs are pincer-tailed insects that feed at night on seedlings, soft fruit and flowers, while also eating aphids and other pests. They are a mixed blessing, so we control them around vulnerable seedlings rather than wiping them out across the garden.

How to identify it

• Ragged holes in soft leaves, petals and seedlings, chewed overnight
• Brown insects with curved pincers at the tail hiding in tight, dark spots
• Damage to dahlias, strawberries and young seedlings in particular
• Earwigs sheltering under mulch, pots and in flower heads by day

How to prevent it

• Remove daytime hiding spots like garden litter, loose mulch and stacked pots near seedlings
• Protect seedlings with collars until they are established
• Keep beds tidy to limit shelter close to vulnerable plants
• Tolerate earwigs away from seedlings, since they also eat aphids and other pests

Organic control, step by step

• Set rolled-up damp newspaper or upturned pots stuffed with straw as overnight traps, then empty them each morning
• Lay shallow containers of oil with a little soy sauce to attract and drown them
• Hand-pick at night with a torch around damaged seedlings
• Apply a band of diatomaceous earth around prized seedlings, refreshing it after rain
• Move traps around the garden to target the worst spots

Plants it attacks