Colour forms Corydalis solida

[maggiepie]

Well that's OK so long as they leave the plants alone.
[/quote]

The ( what I think are ) carpenter ants I have that get into the plant pots eat the roots of the plants.

[cohan]

Cohan, I can send you ants, LOTS of them.
I have what I think are carpenter ants, they are big black ants more than half an inch long.
The new ones arrive in spring, fly in, drop their wings and make straight for any potplant.
If you put the pots in a saucer with gravel and water to keep them out, they find a way to drop in from the top and dig their way down.
They eat the roots of my clematis babies.
Grrrrrr
These ants are weird, they don't seem to have a communal nest. Most I have seen is 3 in one pot.
They also love to live in and under the cedar mulch.
You are welcome to them, plus all the other ants I have.

oh no, let me be clear--we have bazillions of ants! i just haven't noticed them doing anything particular to plants--though i'd have a tough time if i wanted any bed or pot to be totally free of them....

lesley, i would just like to have all buildings of concrete.....  this isn't necessarily a regional problem, but it is for sure on this property which is surrounded by trees, and the ants think any wood (any soil, any anything) is their natural habitat 

[cohan]

they don't really bother the plants, but they eat our houses or anything made of wood....

Well that's OK so long as they leave the plants alone.

I wish the slugs did likewise! That's one of the few reasons I  enjoy the cold weather: No slugs

i have some slugs around, but also have not noticed any damage from them--perhaps due to the large numbers of native birds?...

[maggiepie]

Cohan, no hostas?
I have zillions of slugs, HUGE ones. Birds don't touch them.
Maybe a few chooks or ducks might, though.

[Hoy]

Cohan, no hostas?
I have zillions of slugs, HUGE ones. Birds don't touch them.
Maybe a few chooks or ducks might, though.

Me too. And I have enough birds too but they seem to prefere other food, as you say. The huge ones are the least problem, they are easy to spot. It's the small ones that bother me. Seemingly all slugs want my dearest, smallest, most expensive, rarest plants. Why don't they feed on dandelions?

[maggiepie]

Me too. And I have enough birds too but they seem to prefere other food, as you say. The huge ones are the least problem, they are easy to spot. It's the small ones that bother me. Seemingly all slugs want my dearest, smallest, most expensive, rarest plants. Why don't they feed on dandelions?
[/quote]

Hoy, ( Trond?), I have been very successful at decimating the slug population with a squirt bottle 1 part ammonia to 10 parts water.
You can squirt them and watch them dissolve, can also spray the hostas without fear of damage. Not sure about other plants though. Of course you only spray the plants before the sun gets on them.

[Hoy]

Yes, Trond, it's my given name (Hoy is my family name)
Thank you for the advise. I'll try in some of my beds but I am unable to cover all my copse!

[Hoy]

Back to the Corydalis. I found with some help the name of one of the bumblebees thieving nectar:
(Pictures from Wikimedia)

Bombus wurfleini

It has a short tongue but strong jaws.

The same has Bombus lucorum


Pictures from Wikimedia

[Natalia]

cohan, we have the house ants destroying wood, but them simply enough to destroy.
I start to think that problems with ants and slugs - are identical to gardeners of all countries! And my affairs not so are bad.
 And I so hoped that somewhere there live flower growers not having such difficulties...
Hope is not true.

Trond, you managed to photograph IT!

By the way, if you're talking about pests - tell me who can do such things with pods Corydalis?

[Hoy]

cohan, we have the house ants destroying wood, but them simply enough to destroy.
I start to think that problems with ants and slugs - are identical to gardeners of all countries! And my affairs not so are bad.
 And I so hoped that somewhere there live flower growers not having such difficulties...
Hope is not true.

Trond, you managed to photograph IT!
Sorry to disappoint you! The pictures are from Wikimedia:
http://no.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fil:Bombus_wurfleini_tyvhumle.jpg
http://no.wikipedia.org/wiki/Liten_jordhumle


By the way, if you're talking about pests - tell me who can do such things with pods Corydalis?
Do you mean something eat the seeds? Or suck sap from the immature pods?
That I don't know!

[cohan]

Me too. And I have enough birds too but they seem to prefere other food, as you say. The huge ones are the least problem, they are easy to spot. It's the small ones that bother me. Seemingly all slugs want my dearest, smallest, most expensive, rarest plants. Why don't they feed on dandelions?


Hoy, ( Trond?), I have been very successful at decimating the slug population with a squirt bottle 1 part ammonia to 10 parts water.
You can squirt them and watch them dissolve, can also spray the hostas without fear of damage. Not sure about other plants though. Of course you only spray the plants before the sun gets on them.

no, no hostas here so far.. maybe i just don't have plants the slugs want? though i wouldn't say i have zillions, i have seen plenty around outdoor cat dishes! and we have violas and lettuces etc that i thought would be favourite food for slugs--they may have an occasional nibble, but nothing serious...

[Natalia]

Trond, yes, I wished to ask - somebody faced such damage of pods? I wish to know, who such does?
Seeds partially lie on the earth, partially hang, seed boxes (pods?) are destroyed...
 Whether birds, whether insects - I can not understand.

[Hoy]

Trond, yes, I wished to ask - somebody faced such damage of pods? I wish to know, who such does?
Seeds partially lie on the earth, partially hang, seed boxes (pods?) are destroyed...
 Whether birds, whether insects - I can not understand.

It is possibly ants. They raid the seedpods to get hold of the seeds which have elaiosomes. The ants feed their larvae with the elaiosomes. The seeds are unhurt and possibly thrown out of the ant's nest afterwards. This phenomena is called myrmecochory.

[Natalia]

Maybe ...

I thought of ants, but there are doubts. Some cuts on pods very long. Ants can such make? Or birds also could spoil pods?

[Hoy]

I think some ants can make very long cuts in leaves so why not in pods?
But other animals including birds are possible.