I have been cleaning up my garden and have noticed that I have little worm/maggot looking things in one of my raised garden beds. they seem to be about 2" deep.not sure what they are or if they are harmful to plant with still in the dirt. anyone know what these are? ( photo / image / picture from anderlson's Garden )
Not so fast on the chicken feeding. Many moths hibernate underground in the larval stage, coming above ground in spring to finish that cycle and then spin their cocoons and make the change. You might check into what types of moths are common in your area and look for photos online to see if you have larvae of a good pollinator moth or just root eaters. You could email the photo to your local county extension office too, they can give you good information.
IMHO, it doesn't look like a moth larvae by any stretch of the imagination. So unless I was certain it was a good or beneficial insect I would still feed it to the birds/chickens. If my chickens were in the garden they would scratch it up and eat it anyway whether it was bad or good. They aren't picky or selective in any stretch of the imagination.
I don't have chickens to feed them to.. im starting to think maybe the larvae to a beetle? but there are 100's of them. I will add better pics ( photo / image / picture from anderlson's Garden ) ( photo / image / picture from anderlson's Garden ) ( photo / image / picture from anderlson's Garden )
Can you take a closer picture with more detail? You can try sending an email to Mary Gardiner at the OARDC in wooster Oh and ask if they have an idea. I am inclined to Id it as a pest. but it doesn't hurt to ask them. gardiner.29@osu-edu is her email. Pop her a picture and tell her where you are located, too. Where are you located? maybe I am looking in the wrong direction as to what it is.
I agree with others, it is some kind of beetle. Don't moths & butterflies pupate in a cocoon or chrysalis not the bare ground?
