4 June 2015, written by Barbara Pleasant
Like most gardeners, I first became acquainted with earwigs (Forficula auricularia) when I moved a big clay pot and saw them scurry away from their snug spot beneath it. They were not a problem that year, or in many seasons since, but this year is different. Last week they ate a flat of cosmos seedlings and chewed several herbs I had growing on the deck, and my first head of cabbage had a gang of earwigs hiding in the outer leaves.
Im reluctant to engage in direct earwig control because they are not always harmful. While earwigs do eat leaves and fruits from a long list of plants, they also consume small soft-bodied insects. But especially in rainy years, earwigs in the garden become so numerous that they turn up everywhere and eat things you wish they wouldnt, like the poor basil below. Evidence of earwig feeding includes leaves with holes that have ragged edges, or are only partially rasped through, and a light scattering of very small black particles of earwig excrement.
If you have a baobab tree on your property, you may have noticed earwigs crawling around on it Earwigs are small insects with pincers on their abdomen that can damage trees and plants. While earwigs are not often harmful to established trees like baobabs, they can be a nuisance and may feed on fruits, flowers or new growth Getting rid of earwigs on your baobab will take some work, but it can be done with persistence. Here’s what you need to know about earwigs and how to get rid of them on your baobab tree.
What Are Earwigs?
Earwigs are small, slender insects around 05 inches long when fully grown. They are characterized by their cerci, a pair of pincers or forceps on their abdomen There are over 1,000 different species of earwigs. The common earwig (Forficula auricularia) is the species you are most likely to encounter in North America.
Earwigs get their name from a myth that they crawl into people’s ears while they sleep, though there is no evidence this is true. The pincers on their abdomen make them look dangerous, but they rarely bite humans. The pincers are mostly used for defense, as well as folding their wings under their short forewings.
Earwigs thrive in moist, dark places with plenty of organic debris. During the day, they often hide in cracks or under things. At night, they come out to feed on plants. Earwigs are omnivores and can feed on fruits, plants, insects, fungi and organic debris. This is why they may be attracted to fruits, flowers or foliage on your baobab tree.
Are Earwigs Harmful to Baobab Trees?
Earwigs are not usually seriously harmful to established, mature baobab trees. Baobabs are large, long-lived trees that can withstand some pest damage without problems. However, earwigs may feed on the fruits, flowers, leaves or roots of younger or stressed baobabs, so infestations should still be managed.
Here are some potential effects of earwigs on baobab trees:
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Feed on fruits, flowers and foliage – This can reduce fruit harvests from the baobab and occasionally cause visible damage. Not usually fatal to the tree itself.
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Feed on roots – Earwigs burrow into soil and may nibble on baobab roots, especially if the roots are damaged or decaying already. This could potentially introduce disease.
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Introduction of disease – As earwigs crawl over the baobab, they may spread fungal or bacterial diseases between plant parts. Proper disease management is important.
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Nuisance and aesthetic damage – While not fatal to the tree, earwigs crawling on the baobab may bother homeowners and gardeners. Small amounts of damage may occur.
So while earwigs should be controlled, they are unlikely to kill or severely hurt a mature, healthy baobab on their own. Integrated pest management can keep them in check.
How Do Earwigs Get on Baobab Trees?
Earwigs often live in the soil or in organic mulch near baobab trees. They emerge and crawl onto the baobab at night to feed. There are a few ways earwigs can infest a baobab:
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Crawling from mulch or soil – Earwigs living near the base of the tree find their way onto the trunk and branches. Always leave space between mulch and the trunk.
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Flying – Some earwig species can fly short distances. They may fly to baobabs from other plants.
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Carried by wind – After emerging from cocoons, young earwigs may be blown by wind onto plants like baobabs.
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Spread by gardening tools – Earwigs can inadvertently be moved from an infested plant to a clean baobab on contaminated tools or gloves.
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Trapped by fruits/flowers – Earwigs that crawl into baobab flowers could accidentally be transported if those flowers develop into fruits.
No matter how earwigs first arrive, controlling their population in nearby mulch and soil is key to keeping them off baobabs. Proper sanitation and habitat modification is the first step.
How to Get Rid of Earwigs on Baobab Trees
Getting rid of earwigs takes diligence and patience. Combining multiple control methods usually provides the best results:
Remove Mulch and Debris Near Tree
Earwigs hide and lay eggs in mulch and organic debris around plants during the day. Removing this habitat forces them to find shelter elsewhere. Rake back any mulch near the base of the baobab. Pick up fallen leaves, sticks and other debris within several feet of the trunk.
Use Trap Crops
Trap cropping takes advantage of earwigs’ love of moist, sheltered areas. Make traps by wrapping areas of the tree trunk loosely with damp cardboard or burlap. Earwigs will crawl into these areas for shelter. Check the traps every day, removing and disposing of any earwigs present. Replace traps regularly.
Apply Diatomaceous Earth
Sprinkle diatomaceous earth, a powder made from fossilized algae, around the base of the baobab. The sharp shards cut and damage the outer waxy layer of earwig exoskeletons, causing dehydration. Reapply after rain or irrigation. Avoid breathing in the dust.
Use Horticultural Oils
Drenching the baobab trunk and stems with horticultural oils or insecticidal soaps can smother and kill earwigs present. For best results spray in evening when earwigs are active. Oils must contact the insects to be effective. Repeat applications may be needed.
Encourage Natural Predators
Promoting beneficial predatory insects like ants, ground beetles, and birds provides natural earwig control. Avoid broad-spectrum insecticides that may kill predators. Provide bird houses, seed, and diverse flowering plants that attract predators.
Apply Insecticidal Dust
As a last resort if infestations are severe, apply insecticidal dust labelled for earwig control around the soil/mulch surrounding the tree only. The earwigs will ingest particles as they groom themselves. Avoid spreading dust onto foliage or fruits.
Maintain Tree Health
While not a direct control method, keeping your baobab healthy makes it less susceptible to damage. Water, fertilize, and prune as needed. Address any disease issues promptly. Healthy trees can withstand more earwig damage than stressed ones.
With diligence using multiple methods, you can significantly reduce earwig populations on your baobab tree. Always follow pesticide labels exactly and choose eco-friendly options when possible. It may take time, but you can reclaim your baobab from earwigs and enjoy its fruits and beauty again. Don’t let earwigs bug you!
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The Earwig Ick Factor
Some people are unreasonably icked out by earwigs, in part because they look so threatening. In fact, gardeners who take snakes and spiders in stride are sometimes fearful of earwigs. Originally from Europe, the common earwig has spread to temperate climates throughout the world.
Personally, you have nothing to fear from earwigs. The pincers on their hind ends are used for mating, not biting, and they dont get into peoples ears. Emergency room records indicate that another insect (rhymes with coach) is the bad one. And consider: earwigs in the garden inhabit the moist, dark world of plants and pots and mulch outdoors, and should they come indoors at all it would be to set up housekeeping in a basement rather than a bedroom. In her book, The Earwigs Tale, writer May Berenbaum notes that “the reluctance of earwigs to fly would seem to reduce the probability of their gaining access to the ears of anyone who doesnt habitually sleep with his head jammed into basement corners.”
Wherever they are, earwigs are easy to trap in homemade traps as long as you choose the right method for the job. Earwigs feed at night and gather in sheltered places during the day, so most earwig traps use attractive habitat, or refuge, as their lure.
The exception is the oil pit trap, developed by entomologist Whitney Cranshaw. The best earwig trap to use in the open garden, an oil pit trap is simply a small plastic container with lid, with an entry hole cut in the lid. When baited with canola or olive oil, with a little bacon grease, fish oil or soy sauce sprinkled in for aroma, and sunk into the garden so the lid is flush with the surface, one of these earwig traps can clean up a cabbage patch fast. You wont catch innocent victims, because earwigs are the only garden creatures attracted to the traps, which will need to be emptied and refilled every week or so.
Another good way to trap earwigs in the garden is to roll lightly dampened newspapers into hollow tubes, tie them with thread or lightweight cotton string, and place them among plants that are under attack by earwigs. After a few days the earwigs will set up housekeeping in the newspaper tubes, which can be gathered up and composted. Short pieces of hollow bamboo the thickness of your finger can be used in the same way.
A similar reusable earwig trap can be made by placing plastic drinking straws inside a piece of plastic pipe. Earwigs seem to like plastic though it provides no purchase for their little feet. A couple of taps into a bowl of soapy water, and the earwigs come tumbling out of a drinking straw trap.
Earwigs can become persistent pests of peaches and other tree fruits, in which case cardboard earwig traps tied to trunks and lateral branches are in order. But you dont want to catch all of the earwigs, or at least not until late summer. Until then, research from Utah State University shows that earwigs do more good than harm by eating aphids and other small insects. But when fruits start to soften with ripeness, earwigs can become a problem.
To trap them, all you will need is some corrugated cardboard and strips of cloth to tie the traps to branches. Scientists use one-sided corrugated cardboard, which you can make by wetting one side of a piece of corrugated cardboard, and then prying it off. Make into a small roll, and fasten to trunks and major limbs. Install earwig traps a month before the fruit is expected to ripen, and replace once a week.
As for me, after this years losses, I will take more care to disinvite earwigs to the area where I grow my seedlings. Earwigs stick together in groups, and I found the ones that were eating my seedlings hiding in the dry crevices between plastic pots and the trays used to hold them. It was a perfect set-up for them – rest under the moist pots during the day, come out and eat tender young leaves at night with no aggravation from frogs and other predators. Oops, my mistake.
How to Get Rid of Earwigs
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