Roly Poly - Talks with the Invisible Gardener

Roly-Poly goes by many names. A more common one is the pill bug and in some parts of the country, a sow bug or potato bug. (There is also a completely different critter also called a potato bug or Jerusalem cricket.) These little guys may eat your young plants, but their main job is to break down organic matter. So they are one of the good guys, much like ants are good too.

Just like the ants, the roly-poly helps make compost and return it to the soil. They love to eat dead plant matter and give it back to the soil, this forms one of the basic cycles of nature. The special bacteria in their stomach have developed to help break down vegetation into a compost pile for more of the soil biology to get at. This is a crucial part of soil biology that helps everything else to function.

They help to break down various minerals, toxins, heavy metals, plastic, forever chemicals, and various chemicals used in agriculture such as high nitrogen and other chemical fertilizers are broken down and converted into basic elements and provided to the soil biology, which then distributed out to all the plants. They are essential in providing trace minerals to all plants and trees. When you are having an infestation of too much roly-poly then you are having a soil problem.

You do not want to damage a healthy population but instead to control their population through the way that soil biology does and that is by having a wide range of biology.

So there are two solutions to this problem: A short-term solution and a long-term solution. (you knew that was coming, right?) Let’s just briefly touch upon the long term.

You have to bring the soil biology back, This takes time. You have to provide for the “housing or condos” needed by the various biology. You want a city in the city that houses the various workers. Each has different tasks and together they provide the plants and in turn, all living things with the basic minerals, carbon, etc. that are required for life. Healing takes time and understanding what is needed and how to do it. You don’t need to know what they all are, just that if you follow the way mother nature builds up the soil and provides life back into the soil, you will have a working soil biology in no time. You do need to know that all life needs trace minerals. There are around 96 trace minerals. We need all of them. Miss one and you will have problems. Same with the insect, and plant world. One of the tools I like to use is called a refractometer. This measures the Brix levels in all plants, trees grasses, roses, and everything that grows in the ground. Brix is a measurement of sugar. This is especially important in plants for many reasons. One of which is this: Mother Nature in her wisdom decided to make sugar the way minerals are spread out and used by the plants. So the higher the brix the more different minerals are available. These minerals also change the plant to produce either complex or simple sugars. Insects love simple carbohydrates and cannot digest complex carbohydrates.

This is the controlling mechanism that nature has created. This is one reason why young plants are being eaten by the roly poly and others and that is simple because it doesn’t have the right minerals along with the right biology to produce higher brix.

I’m glad that was just a short explanation.

Here are some short-term solutions: The first is to provide plants with an immediate way for your plants to get the minerals they need and that will raise the brix levels faster. This is foliar. By spraying on the leaves and trunk, as well as in soil around roots, the trace mineral is in a solution that is various soil biology.

Now there are many ways to make these.

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Compost Tea \ Worm Juice Tea

‍Many types of liquids and microbial formulas available, try searching Korean farming or biodynamic farming. Another good source I especially like is Acres USA. This is where you will find real organic farmers. They produce an amazing amount of biology. Just pick one and start with that. If you all would like, I can write more on these formulas.

So I make my secret sauce. It is made from my worm farm is is just one part of what goes into making it. Just start making compost and apply the trace minerals (try sea90.com this has 90 trace minerals).

Meanwhile, you will need to start spraying any or all of the following.

Organic Cold brew coffee will help to reduce various insect infestations on the soil. Make sure you spray the plants as late as possible. I would make it as strong as possible since it is the caffeine that makes it work. I would also use French Vanilla, the vanilla is toxic to most insects as well as others with sensitive noises (which is almost all of us).I spray garden beds regularly with my microbial teas or compost teas. I have found that not only does it help the soil to recover faster but it helps in controlling infestations of anything.

Trying planting only heirloom organically grown seeds. These are usually much stronger right from the start. Learn to use garlic. A light garlic spray can be made and sprayed on the plants regularly will also help.

Ask Andy Your Gardening Questions!

Any questions or comments please send them to andylopez@invisiblegardener.com with "All Things Malibu" as the subject. Thank you for your questions. I will answer everyone here.

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