Earwig Bug Traps For The Logical You
Are you having trouble with the pesky little earwigs? They can be a real pain in the neck as they can invade your garden, flower beds, and even your home! They like to feed on decomposed plants and drenched leaves. In short, they love any organic matter that they can use as a cozy shelter during day times. When the night creeps in, they venture out for a grand feast. They like to feed on almost anything in the garden. In general, they like to eat vegetables, crops, and fruits. But, they will also feed on roses, dahlias, and zinnias. They can damage the seedlings as they love feeding on it. They also like to gorge on lichens and mosses. They are more active during autumn and spring when the climate is moist and cool.
How To Identify?
So, how do you identify if you have earwig issues in your garden? Just check around in your garden. Did you notice that there are nibble spots and gauge marks at the growing tips, flowers, fruits, and stems? Then, it is a clear indication that earwigs have invaded your property! They can destroy a whole flowering bed in one night. They munch on the roots of seedlings and destroy them too. Once you have identified the issue, the next step is to get somehow rid of them. You can either use chemical traps or opt for natural traps. And yet, it is always better to take preventive actions before the invasions happen.
Traps For Earwigs
Earwigs often hide in moist, cool and dark places during the daytime. You can make use of this habit of theirs and set up traps in their hiding places. Here are some of the traps you can use:
Can Trap
Get some used tin cans like empty pet food cans. This earwig trap soya sauce oil is found to be very effective in getting rid of earwigs. Fill about 1.25 centimeters (1/2 inch) of the can with vegetable oil. It will easily lure the earwigs. They will crawl inside the can and drown in the oil. Dump the dead earwigs and refill the can to catch more earwigs.
- Get 1/3 cup of cooking oil, a shallow plastic can, scissors and soya sauce
- The container should only be about 2-3 inch deep. If it is longer than that, then cut the container to the required depth.
- Add the soya sauce and vegetable oil in it.
- Make a shallow hole near the plant beds the earwigs often attack. Bury the can inside the soil so that the trap remains at ground level. The rim of the can should also be covered with mud.
- Leave it overnight.
- Check the trap in the morning and reuse if needed.
- The earwigs get lured by the soya sauce and get trapped inside the oil.
- It is better to remove the trap early in the morning as other insects also might get lured by the trap.
- You can make use of empty yogurt cups, party cups or dip containers.
- For this earwig trap oil, you can use the same cup for about 2-3 nights and then dispose off the contents. Now, you can refill it and use it again.
- Roll Trap
You can also trap earwigs by using damp newspapers. This is one of the best earwig traps for the garden. Roll the newspapers into open tubes and tie it using a lightweight string of cotton or a thread. Place this roll near the plants which are usually attacked by earwigs. You can also place them near the base portion of plants after sunset. As an alternate option, you can also use an old piece of garden hose. After a few days, the earwigs will start living inside these tubes. Then you can take the tubes and decompose it. You can also make use of thin and hollow pieces of bamboo. You can either empty the earwigs inside the tube into a bucket filled with water every morning, or you can dispose of it at a place away from your home. - You may also make use of a pleated or corrugated cardboard. Roll it up and secure it using a rubber band. Place it near the plants. The earwigs will crawl inside and get trapped there.
- Stuff flower pots with rolled newspapers or moist straw and leave it upside down using some small pebbles to prop it up. Ensure that you leave some space for the earwigs to crawl inside. These newspaper earwig traps can help you get rid of earwigs easily!
- Indoor Traps Using Cardboard
If earwigs are troubling you inside your house too, then you can opt for this trap. Make some holes over the outer side of an empty shoe box near to its base. Now, spread a thin layer of bran or oatmeal in the bottom of the box and cover it with the lid. Place this box near your house entrances or other areas where you have noticed earwigs.
Here Are Some Homemade Earwig Traps That Can Save Your Day!
Homemade traps are easier to set up and won’t cost you much too. Why use harmful chemicals when you can easily trap them using homemade traps? Take a look at some of them:
Outdoor Traps Using Cardboard
You can make use of any small box of cardboard, like the ones you usually use for holding an array of Christmas cards. Make holes of the size ¼ inch in the bottom portion of the box over the sides. Now, you can bait the trap using a tiny amount of bran or oatmeal along with a bit of boric acid. Place this box outside in your yard or garden and cover it with a board so that it won’t get wet in the rains or in the morning mist. The earwigs will be lured by the bait and nibble on it. But, you have to remain patient as it takes almost one week for them to die off.
Earwigs Living On Trees
If you notice earwigs residing on trees, then you can trap them using some cloth strips and a few corrugated cardboards. The scientists recommend using a single-sided cardboard. You can wet one side of the cardboard piece and pry it off after that. Make this cardboard into a tiny roll and fasten it to the major limbs and trunks of the tree. It is better to set the trap one month before the fruits are expected to start ripening. Keep replacing it once in a week.
Earwigs On Marigold Plants
If you have marigold plants at home and the earwigs are destroying them, then you can use a mix of soya sauce, oil and molasses to get rid of them. If you do not have molasses at your home, then you can use corn syrup as an alternative. Mix all the contents in an empty baby food jar and bury it near the plant. Now, prop the jar’s lid. The jar will be filled with earwigs that feed on the marigolds by evening. You can empty the bottle and refill again to kill more earwigs.
Use Plastic Food Containers
Get some used and emptied plastic food containers with tight lids. Add some linseed oil about 3-4 mm from the bottom of the container. Now, make some holes on the container, below the lid and above the level of oil. Place this trap around the plants which are constantly attacked by earwigs. Leave it there for the whole night. As the day dawns, you can observe that many earwigs had been caught inside the trap. Empty the contents safely and replace it for catching more earwigs.
Use Beer
This earwig trap beer is very effective in getting rid of earwigs easily and quickly. Take a jar and fill it half with beer. Now, lay this jar in earwig infested areas. Earwigs love to gorge on beer. But, they will die as soon as they drink it.
Use Plastic Drinking Straws
You can make earwig trap using drinking straws made of plastic. Place these straws within a plastic pipe piece. The earwigs get lured by plastic and enter inside the straws if you place it in infested places. Tap the straws into a bowl filled with soapy water. The earwigs will start falling from the straw. It is better to wait until the late summer season to get rid of the earwigs. Before that, researchers have proved that earwigs are beneficial. It feeds on tiny insects and aphids, thereby saving your crops. But, when the fruits start to ripen, then you should get rid of the earwigs soon.
Use Bamboo
Get sections of garden pipe of bamboo, of one-foot length and lay it over the garden beds in the midst of the plants. Keep checking these traps every morning and remove the trapped earwigs. Replace it until your garden becomes free of earwigs.
Use Soy Sauce
Take a cottage cheese container and pour soy sauce in it up to a height of one inch from the bottom of the container. Now, cover the layer of soy sauce with another thin layer of oil. Make 3-4 half inch holes in the upper half of the container. Secure the container with a lid so that the rains won’t enter inside the trap. The earwigs will climb inside the container through the holes provided and then die inside the container. Dispose the contents inside the container once in a week and then replace them.
Use Unrinsed Containers Of Frozen Juice
Get some unrinsed and empty containers of frozen juice. Fill up the container up to two-thirds from the bottom using water. Add a few drops of liquid drops into it and place the trap in earwig infested areas. You can also get commercially available traps for earwigs from the nearest store.
Check Out Some Useful Tips On How To Catch Earwigs
Here are some tips that can help you while you try catching the earwigs in and around your home:
- It is always better to place many traps all around the garden or yard.
- You can try hiding the traps in secluded places like under the shrubs, plants and near the fences.
- The easiest trap is to use an empty can and fill it with oil up to half inch from the bottom.
- You can use either a vegetable oil with a bit of bacon grease or use a fish oil just like the tuna oils we often get in the markets.
- Make sure the traps are sunk deep into the soil leaving only the opening outside. The top of the can should always be at the ground level of the soil.
- Empty the can filled with dead earwigs carefully and then refill the cans using oil again.
- Ensure that you place these traps before night time. Then, shake off all the trapped earwigs into soapy water after the day dawns.
- You can also drop earwigs into a strong plastic bag and crush it to kill it.
- Keep continuing these procedures until your home becomes free of earwigs.
Easy Methods! Easy Traps!
The above article would have provided you with a better understanding that earwig problems can be solved easily using homemade traps. Opt for commercial and chemical traps only if you find all the above ideas ineffective.