Everyone who has a garden or decorates their balcony with flower pots knows them, the woodlice. They are harmless little animals that like to stay in a warm, humid place, for example in cavities in or under the flower pot.
How do I get rid of woodlice in flower pots?
To get rid of woodlice from flower pots, try home remedies such as lava rock dust or ground cinnamon on the ground. Provide alternative, dry habitats such as upturned baited pots and avoid damp cavities by placing pots on feet.
What you need to know about woodlice
These are grey-brown crustaceans that can grow up to 2 cm long. They love high humidity and prefer dark, musty places.
Short profile
- they belong to the land isopods
- they are crustaceans
- there are 50 species in Germany
- they are nocturnal
- their species is millions of years old
- the woodlice lives for two years
- they are harmless to humans
Fighting woodlice
Islice are useful in the garden because they eat dead plant residue and thus contribute to the formation of humus. However, if they appear en masse in flower boxes, containers or pots, they can cause damage. Since they cannot find enough dead material to feed on, they also eat seedlings and young plants.
Ways to combat it
Since these are useful animals, you shouldn't resort to chemical treatment. The best way is to set up empty, upside-down pots, fill them with shavings, wood shavings or leaves and put bait (any vegetable) in them. The woodlice collect in the pot overnight and can be transported outdoors in the morning. Another way to scare away woodlice is to sprinkle lava rock dust. Flower pots treated in this way will not be visited. You can also place the pots on feet. This means there is no damp cavity and the woodlice stay away.
Natural predators
Islice have enemies in the garden that decimate the population. These include toads, frogs, hedgehogs and various birds. If the infected flower pots are in the garden, the predators can intervene, but on a high balcony it becomes difficult. Other means must be used here.
Home remedies for woodlice
There are certainly poisons commercially available to combat woodlice. However, you should only use it in an extreme emergency, as chemicals only harm the natural cycle and are not useful. It is better to use home remedies. First of all, you should make sure that the locations where the flower pots are installed are dry. Woodlice don't like dryness. Give the woodlice other places to stay overnight. Sprinkle lava rock dust (€11.00 on Amazon) on the ground; ground cinnamon is also said to repel woodlice.
