I've had a compost bin for many years, and now and then I will run across a hugh white grub. They are always curled up, or 'folded' in half, 2/3 inch in dia. and aprox 2 in. long. They look like eating machines! When I find them, I put them on top of my cinder block fence so the birds can spot them and get a meal. I know that grubs are just one phase of life for this insect, but what the heck does it mature into? (Shutter) Sorry that I do not have any photo's.
It could turn into a Japaneese beetle, a bark beetle or some other in the scarab or chafer family....It's not possible for me to tell, but you want to get rid of them all. Giving them the cinder block treatment like the Parsi (Zoroastrians) do their dead. It will make some birdie very happy. I can remember (from my childhood) finding big larvae like that in old rotted logs when my family would go for walks in the woods.
Grubs are good bird food, they eat grass, plant and veggie roots then become beetles (here we call them June Bugs) that eat leaves from trees and shrubs. So coming or going they do no good in the yard.
Agghh - Japanese beetles! We have tons of them in the summer, and I've been harboring them right outside my door! I shall do some digging and the birds will eat well. Thanks for your help.
Japanese beetle grubs are not 2" long. These larger ones may be good for your compost pile. Rest of article here: http://extension.oregonstate.edu/news/s ... ype=garden
Thanks for attaching this very interesting article Gardentoad. I'm going to have to get a photo of these critters.
everything I find says the soldier fly larva are only 5/8 inch long so may not be that. I am trying to find a site I used to have that would identify grubs and larva of insects but not having much luck, will see if I can find my book on them. Only larva/grubs I found that were 2 inches long were the large moth larva, Luna, tomato and other but found no pictures of them.
Wow! They sound huge I would be interested if you can ID them. I'm always wary of grubs. They like to eat healthy roots, well the one's I've seen anyway. I set them out for the birds to eat whenever I dig em up. Besides, my cold compost pile has plenty of earthworms, as yours does too I'm sure.
