Maggots in peas

[Granny]

For the first time I have had maggots in my maincrop peas. Are some varieties more susceptible to this than others, or might it be the timne of year or the weather? Any advice welcome.
-----------------
Granny

[Marken]

Hi Granny, I think this is the pea moth, which will eat any type of pea including the mange tout types.

[FelixLeiter]

The presence of pea moth seems to be down to all sorts of things: weather, time of the year — who knows for sure. Most years the damage is quite mild, this year it seems to be bad. Last year, I had none at all.

Here's a fact about pea moth that may be of interest to home seed savers: the larvae do not attack the most vital part of the seed. That way, you can sow pea moth damaged seed and it will all germinate.

[Marken]

I'm in Bristol and this year the attack of pea moth has been almost unnoticeable (ie I havent knowingly eaten any!). Last year was a different story, loads of larvae. I've noticed the raspberries have been clear this year as well. Sorry, I'm straying off topic...

[Granny]

Thanks for replies. It's actually quite reassuring to know it's unpredictable. I've never had any before so wondered if I'd done something wrong.
-------------------
Granny

[Colin_M]

I'm in Bristol and this year the attack of pea moth has been almost unnoticeable (ie I havent knowingly eaten any!).

I'm just down the road from you and have had quite a few pods with wriggly visitors in them.

Can anyone advise if it gets worse over the summer? My first crop has now finished and I'm about to plant a second lot.