Grubs/larvae or something in my veg patch

I have a raised bed for veg this year. I was doing some weeding this morning and I came across a number of grubs or caterpillars.

They were about 1 - 2 inches below the soil, from quarter to 2 inches long, moved like a grub/caterpillar, quite "fat" and sort of fusiform/torpedo shaped, greyish brown with clearly visible internal organs and a sort of dark brown mouth piece arrangement. Sort of like a large grey-brown maggot but not so wriggly

The dog had two and I disposed of another three.

What are they? Should I be getting rid of them? or am I getting rid of rare butterfly larvae?

Clueless

Susanna

 

Oh - right - it's a leatherjacket.

I see that I can water nematodes into the soil in August. Any advice as to how I can manage them until then?

I am assuming that they are not hazardous to feed to dogs or chickens?

Susanna

 

When it comes to dealing with leather jackets, your best friends are birds - starlings and blackbirds in particular. They dig them out of my lawn with great dexterity and really seem to enjoy them!

Of course, if you're protecting crops in your veg bed against the birds, the leather jackets will remain safe and secure. I reckon your best bet is to cultivate the soil thoroughly with a hand fork or a border fork and when you bring them to the surface, squash them.

I'm pretty sure they won't harm your dog and I believe chickens consider them a delicacy.

 

I found this online just now at http://www.gardenseeker.com/lawns/leatherjackets_in_lawns.htm

"An old method â?? which works â?? is to cover the lawn area with a black plastic sheet at night in damp conditions. Peel back the sheet slowly in the morning and collect up the surfaced leatherjackets. Peel back the sheet slowly, for if you just peel it right back, some of the leatherjackets will escape back down into the lawn to get away from the light."

Could you do something similar, even though it's not for a lawn?