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Joliet, IL

first time ever in my 10th year of growing that i had them. and let me tell you, they were plentiful. i noticed that the 1161 sprout and the backup next to it looked awefully limpy tonight after work when it was cool and cloudy all day. the greenhouse temps were 80 with space heaters so there was no reason for the limpiness. i dug the soil away from the base of the 1161 and it fell over with at least 15 maggots inside already and 10 on the outside and the damage was done. so on to the next and so on. i lost a 1605, 1161, and all my backups in the ground. the 1725 harp had one maggot on the stem with no damage and none inside the stem. so i immediately cleared all soil down to the roots around the base and directly coated the stem with a dilluted merit solution on the stronger side. i then watered it into the roots and went to the garden shop quickly. i picked up some diatomaceous earth, a granular insecticide by bonide called "eight" which says it controls seed maggots and cutworms and the like, and also a bonide product called "systemic granules insect control" that is imidaclorprid granules. i mixed those 3 products in some sterile seed starter mix and removed all soil down to the base of the stem til i saw roots and then put the mixture of the seed starter mix and insecticides around the base of the 1725 harp. i am going to treat my soil in the greenhouses and incorporate these products. i am also going to put 5 of my own backup plants that are still in peat pots into the ground tomorrow after the soil treatment and backfill around the plants with the same mix in the seed starter mix i stated above to act as barrier around the stems.

4/27/2011 10:12:25 PM

Joliet, IL

i will see how this works with these backups and i have started a new round of seeds tonight incase this system doesn't work. i will post the results and let others know if it works. i lost some great sprouts, but have learned a great lesson and glad i have the backups available and am not too far behind with this new round of seeds. beware this year...i have never seen them before and my soil has been heated for over 2 weeks with space heaters, but not ground cables. they were hatching in the greenhouses, but i did not see the large numbers of adult flies like have in past years and now i know why. brooks nailed it in a post that said this year will be a tough year for the corn seed maggots due to the cold wet temps....and he was right. for me to never see them in 10 years and for them to take down 5 sprouts in 24 hours after transplanting, they are a serious threat to be concerned with. learn from my early example this year and i hope we can find a good solution to prevent them from taking down other sprouts this year.

4/27/2011 10:16:28 PM

South Bloomfield, Ohio

Jeff,

I am very sorry to hear of your tough luck so early on, but my gut feeling is you'll bounce back nicely.

Have you considered placing a physical barrier around your plants such as a coffee can with both ends cut out in addition to the products you mentioned?

4/27/2011 10:55:59 PM

milford, CT,

Shazzy, I feel your pain..I lost all my main plants 2 years in a row..Good thing is to have back-ups ready to go..Good Luck!!Mark

4/27/2011 10:57:42 PM

Joliet, IL

i like that idea joe and will come up with a temporary barrier that will be easily removed later on when the threat of the corn seed maggots is over along with what i have detailed above. i am doing some major research this evening and will be up late into the night and suffer at work tomorrow, but i am going to do my homework on these bastards and see what products should work for the benefit of all in this cold wet crappy spring. soil heating cables might be a must from here on out to hatch them, but there has to be some kind of reliable soil treatment to kill them as pupae in the soil before they hatch or after.

4/27/2011 11:13:52 PM

Springfield, VT

I have had them and the only way to prevent the problem is a contact insecticide. The merit is no good against them. I have used and will use a half strength dose of Triazacide (warrior t) when I plant and water in at the base with about a cup of liquid. Since doing this all the plants survive and only found a few dead maggots.

4/28/2011 7:58:10 AM

Roselle, IL [email protected]

I left you a message.. call me when you can

4/28/2011 8:33:25 AM

Upa Creek, MO

How do they attack the plant; through the soil or from above? I'm transpalnting today and will use a contact to prevent.

Sorry to hear about this Shazzy.

4/28/2011 9:39:03 AM

Menomonie, WI ([email protected])

From the soil eating the roots...Silent killers

4/28/2011 10:08:12 AM

Dillsburg, PA

Bastards have got me every year that I try to plant early- now. They tend to leave the soil around mid-may at my place. Of course that is a bit late to try and get the big one.

4/28/2011 11:07:11 AM

Indiana

merit before plants go outside. Never had a problem on thousands of plants

4/28/2011 11:29:39 AM

Massillon, Ohio

In 2009, I experienced the same feelings Shazzy described in his diary. We know we will have problems throughout the season, but to have those rotten little maggots wipe you out, just when you have such high hopes of a great season is no fun!! Shaz, I have adopted the same program you are talking about: Warm the soil by whatever means you have....do an insecticide drench 1 week before planting....at planting, rake in a 3' diameter circle of granular Merit and Diatomaceous Earth, and use a plastic collar around the stem. The maggots should be in the top 1" of soil, so the collar doesn't need to be too deep. Someone told me to wrap a small piece of roofing paper tight around the stem. No maggots last year, but I'm nervous about this cool wet spring. Here is a link to a message board with info provided by Littlebit Rob.
http://www.bigpumpkins.com/MsgBoard/ViewThread.asp?b=3&p=251912

4/28/2011 11:45:10 AM

Joliet, IL

IThanks everyone for the kind words and encouragement. Nice to hear the system you used Nana is the same I am now going with. The stem of the 1725 looked good this morning with no maggots all the way til the rooots. How many are in the roots I have no idea. The products I used listed above mixed into sterile seed starter mix and placed all around the 1725 about from the stem to 1' out last night will hopefully be the barrier I need. I will also place a barrier all the way to the base because my damage was down further than the top one inch. Right at the start of the root system where the stem is whitish is where they went in. I read triazicide on line works and this morning I dug out holes 2' wide and watered in triazicide and mixed in all the above products. Tonight I will get some high end potting soil from the hydro shop..no pun intended..lol..and incorporate the above products into it, and fill the holes and use this mix for backfill around the transplant. And then water in light dose of triazicide like wilbur suggested. I am just happy I have 6 healthy backups to take the others place and have more germinating. Fight the good fight all and learn from my set back. Yes nana, worst start ever and worst feeling in the world, not counting a bes, or svb damage, or hail or...etc....lol. thank you all

4/28/2011 12:14:46 PM

Upa Creek, MO

Would some Sevin dust or Bifen mixed in with the top layer of soil help since it is a spot killer? Wouldn't it take time for the Merit to kill the maggots since it is a systemic and much of the damage would be done. I think Cntryboy called it reveng killing.

4/28/2011 12:20:50 PM

milford, CT,

Shazzy..I agree with the pre-plant soil warming..if you see millions of little black flies you are in the safe zone. Those are the seed maggots post larvae stage..Mark

4/28/2011 3:36:20 PM

Joliet, IL

for those also choosing to go with the protective ring around the plants, you can get 6" or 8* flimsey black poly pots at a hydroponic grow store or good nursery. i cut the bottoms off leaving about 3.5 to 4" on top and cut a slit on the side to make it easy to put around and then remove later. very easy to cut these pots and they are cheap. i then put them around the newly transplanted backups tonight when i was done doing everything i mentioned above. what a 24 hours...lol. we will see how this round goes and more are germinating incase. i start plenty of my own seeds for backups every year and this is the first year it payed off big time. thanks again all for the post, emails and calls last night and today. you guys are the coolest. lol.

4/28/2011 7:09:56 PM

Mastic Beach, New York

i feel your pain happen to me few years back ..lost 1385 jutras

4/29/2011 9:17:30 AM

[email protected]

Do it all!

Water with Merit when the seedlings are still in their pots. I used 1/10th tsp/gallon H2O.

Spray a contact killer when you transplant.

Apply Lorsban in your cold frames.

A physical barrier may work too.

4/29/2011 9:26:46 AM

Joliet, IL

I have done more research since when digging out the planting spot before incorporating my granule products I went through the spoils I threw out of the greenhouses and found many brown small rice looking pupae that haven't hatched yet. These turn into the adults that mate and immediately lay eggs near cool organic matter and they love the smell of manure even if composted well and also freshly turned in cover crops. These eggs hatch in 2 to 9 days and burrow into the ground. They will also lay eggs at the base of a sprout plant at soil level. The maggots like the smell of germinating seeds or sprouts and identify the chemical odor and will migrate to them. This means the ring around the plant may work for thoseb grubs hatched and burrowed down in the soil, but a protective ring around the base of the stem at soil level could help prevent the first hatched flies to lay their eggs where the stem meets the soil.

4/29/2011 10:02:42 AM

Joliet, IL

After more discussion with friends who have battled them, all said Nana was right on the money and also they watered in warrior t in a ring around about 10" away from the transplants besides merit granules and diatomaceous earth. I will never take this enemy lightly again and encourage everyone to try to warm their soil up as much as possible before transplant cuz they adults do not typically like to lay their eggs in warm soil. Warm soil equals more natural preditors active as well and these grubs have a better survival rate in cooler soils. There is a lot of great info online and this is the best info I can share to help out the community.

4/29/2011 10:13:17 AM

Minnesota([email protected])

I wonder if garlic powder would deter them, or mask the smell of the germinating seeds?

4/29/2011 12:39:01 PM

Joliet, IL

I did come across that Doug in my 8 or so hours on the subject on line as garlic being used. Maybe incorporate some in a circle around transplants. It is the chemical scent of a germinating seed that they are triggered to leave the dead organic stuff and go for the higher nutrient material. The problems with sprouts is the still emit the same scent. more mature plants are usually not affected cuz they lose that scent as they mature.

4/29/2011 2:19:18 PM

Rochester

hi shazzy,i read your post recently about your maggot problem. yesterday maggots wiped me out . just wondering how your plants are doing.went out and bought merit and diatamatious earth today.greatly appreciate any recomendations. thanks TIM FINN webster,n.y.

5/15/2011 1:53:58 PM