On Mon, 09 Apr 2012 12:31:05 -0500, "John Price"
wrote:

Hi

Still plodding along working towards creating my first ever veg
patches. Got some spuds in the first strip now.

Got to wondering about water-butts. Close by to where I'm doing this is
a heavy duty plastic container (about 200-250 litres), left behind by
my predecessor. It sits beneath the downpipe from the guttering of my
garage. It has no top. Apart from water, I noticed last year that it
was also teeming with loads of what may be extra-terrestial life forms
wriggling around.

I could empty and clean it out and put it back in place, but should a
proper water-butt that I would use to water the veggies with, have a
lid. What are the issues? I could find something to cover the top with,
but would that need to be air/insect tight?

Thanks

JIP

If there was "stagnant " water in the butt then the likely wrigglies
are mosquito larvae. If you start pulling water from the butt and the
rain starts replenishing it, the disturbance will, in time, take care
of the mosquitos as they don't like disturbed water. Adding a lid to
stop other crud getting in will be a good idea, though. It will also
help to stop any mosquitos that develop from the larvae getting out if
it's a decent fit.

FWIW, I "clean" my butt every 3-4 years merely to get any accumulated
muck out of the bottom. I have given a lot of thought to composing the
previous sentence and await suitably original comments in response :~)

Cheers, Jake
=======================================
Urgling from the nicely warm but wet east end
of Swansea Bay.