Earwigs have a way of appearing where you least expect them. Open a hose storage box, lift a flowerpot, or peel back mulch in a vegetable bed and you might find a small, flattened insect scuttling away, tail-end pincers raised like a tiny scorpion. Their look alarms people, and their name does not help. Decades of myths have convinced many that earwigs climb into ears and burrow toward the brain. They do not. They are opportunistic omnivores with a knack for hiding in cool, damp cracks. If you understand their habits, you can decide whether they are a friend, a mild nuisance, or a pest that needs managing.
I have scraped earwig clusters off garage door seals, sifted them from dahlias after a cool June rain, and watched them hunt aphids under a deck light. In some summers, they barely show up. In others, their numbers spike and clients call with holes chewed through basil leaves. The right approach depends on your climate, your garden style, and your tolerance for a nocturnal insect that thrives on moisture and mess.
A quick primer on who earwigs are
The common earwig most North American homeowners see is the European earwig, Forficula auricularia. Adults measure around half an inch to three-quarters of an inch long, with flattened, reddish-brown bodies and curved forceps at the rear. Males have larger, more curved pincers than females. Those pincers are not stingers. Earwigs use them for mating, defense, and to fold their wings. They can nip if handled roughly, enough to startle but not to break skin for most people.
They are primarily nocturnal, emerging at dusk to feed and returning to sheltered crevices before dawn. They favor moisture and darkness, which is why you find them under mulch, stones, or dense groundcovers. Indoors, they are accidental visitors, slipping beneath door sweeps or riding in on potted plants. Without access to damp microhabitats, they dry out quickly and die.
Earwigs undergo simple metamorphosis. Females overwinter in soil chambers with their eggs and show unusual maternal care for an insect. They clean and guard the eggs and, after hatching, continue to shepherd the young through early molts. That caring behavior helps local populations rebound after disturbances such as spring cleanups.
The earwig diet, with all its contradictions
Earwigs are omnivores with a taste that runs from tender plant tissue to dead insects. They scavenge decaying leaves and consume algae, moss, and fungi. They also hunt soft-bodied pests like aphids, mites, and the eggs of some garden insects. When prey is plentiful, they lean into protein. When pickings are slim, they move to greenery and flowers.
Gardeners notice them when they chew irregular holes in petals and leaves. They love young seedlings with soft tissue, so newly planted lettuce, basil, zinnias, marigolds, and strawberries can take a beating. They will graze on silk of sweet corn and flower buds of dahlias or roses, leaving ragged edges that look like slug damage. Unlike slugs, earwigs rarely leave slime trails, and they often feed higher on plants.
The dual role is what makes them tricky. In an integrated pest management program, earwigs get credit for reducing aphid and small caterpillar numbers, especially in mixed perennial beds. In a vegetable garden with lots of mulch and drip irrigation, they sometimes overpopulate and switch to crops. Your control plan should reflect which side of that equation you see in your yard.
Are they harmful to people or pets?
The short answer: not in any medically significant way. Earwigs do not transmit disease to humans, and their pincers do not inject venom. They might pinch when trapped against skin, which can sting like a snapped rubber band, but injuries are minor. They do not infest ears. That myth goes back centuries and persists because the insects seek tight, dark spaces. If one blunders onto a pillow outdoors and meets an ear canal, it is pure accident, not intent.
For pets, the risk is similar. Cats will toy with them. Dogs may eat them. Neither scenario causes more than momentary irritation. If an earwig gets inside the home, it dries out in a day or two without access to damp hiding spots. The primary harm earwigs cause is to delicate plants and, sometimes, fruit quality when feeding creates entry points for rot.
Why earwig populations spike
In my experience, three conditions drive earwig booms:
- Persistent moisture held at the surface by heavy mulch, drip irrigation leaks, or compacted soil that does not drain. Abundant shelter such as stacked firewood, ground-level decks, loose landscape fabric, and thick, matted plant debris left after fall. Plenty of food, especially in gardens with ongoing aphid problems or beds loaded with early season annuals.
A cool, wet spring followed by warm nights can add jet fuel to their breeding cycle. Female earwigs often produce two clutches per season in favorable climates. If you remove predators like https://arthurgwkkw9352.bearsfanteamshop.com/bird-control-for-businesses-humane-and-effective ground beetles and spiders with broad-spectrum insecticides, you also remove a natural check on their numbers.
Recognizing earwig damage and activity
Distinguishing earwig injury from slug or caterpillar feeding saves time and keeps you from chasing the wrong pest. Earwig grazing often shows as irregular holes in leaves and petals with a tattered look, sometimes confined to the edges. Damage typically appears overnight and seems worse after rainy or humid evenings. You might find frass and chewed petals inside dense flower heads at daybreak.
A simple trap test helps confirm. Roll a piece of corrugated cardboard or a section of newspaper, lightly dampen it, and tuck it near affected plants at dusk. Check it early in the morning. If earwigs tumble out, you have your culprit. In vegetable beds, set a shallow tuna can baited with fish oil or soy sauce and check it at sunrise. A few mornings of monitoring reveal whether you are dealing with a small, tolerable population or something that warrants action.
Weighing their benefits in the garden
It is a mistake to treat every earwig sighting as a call to arms. In perennial borders, earwigs can hold down aphids on lupines and roses. In fruit trees, they sometimes reduce psylla and scale crawlers when populations are moderate. Where mulch is light, moisture is regulated, and plant choices lean toward sturdy foliage, earwigs blend into the background of a healthy ecosystem.
I have taken clients from knee-jerk spraying to a balanced stance by addressing stress points. When you cut heavy watering and improve airflow, you often see earwig numbers fall without chemicals. Then the remaining earwigs help keep spring pest surges from getting out of hand. The goal is not eradication but equilibrium.
Practical prevention in and around the house
If you only ever see earwigs near exterior doors or in a basement utility room, the solution is mechanical and simple. Seal gaps and reduce moisture. I look at door sweeps first. A worn or missing sweep is an open invitation. Next are foundation cracks and weep holes. Fine-mesh screens and good caulking close most of those routes. Check that exterior lights are not washing walls with glare at night, since lights attract insects that earwigs will follow. Switch to warm-spectrum LEDs or shield fixtures to direct light downward.
Move mulch back from the foundation by a few inches, and do not pile it against siding. Adjust sprinklers so they do not soak the base of the house, especially in the evening. Fix leaky hose bibs. Indoors, use a dehumidifier in damp basements and keep storage off the floor on wire racks where air can circulate. These tactics do not kill earwigs, they make the space unappealing to them, which is the durable solution.
Garden-level control: start with habitat
Earwig numbers respond to habitat changes faster than most people expect. Two or three weeks of adjustments can cut a booming population in half.
- Thin mulch to two inches or less near problem beds, and switch from fine shredded bark to a coarser chip that dries at the surface between waterings. Water in the morning so the top layer of soil is dry by evening. Lift ground-hugging clutter: spare pots, wood offcuts, and leaky drip lines all harbor clusters. Store firewood off the ground and away from beds. Prune dense perennials to improve airflow. Removing the lower leaf skirt from dahlias and chrysanthemums limits the cool cavity earwigs favor.
These measures are not glamorous, but they disrupt the damp crevices where earwigs rest. Because they are night feeders, a dry, bright daytime environment pushes them elsewhere or reduces survival.
Trapping that actually works
I favor trapping when seedlings are at risk or when a client wants measurable progress without broad-spectrum sprays. You need consistency at dawn, since earwigs hide again once the sun rises. Two trap types have proven reliable for me:
- Shelter traps. Rolled corrugated cardboard, short lengths of bamboo with nodes intact, or pieces of old garden hose sections cut to 6 inches. Place a few near affected plants in the evening. At sunrise, tap the traps into a bucket of soapy water, then reset. Replace cardboard as it softens or molds. Oil traps. A shallow container, like a tuna can, buried level with the soil and filled with half vegetable oil and a splash of soy sauce for attractant. Earwigs climb in and drown. Check daily to avoid capturing non-targets and to prevent rancid odor.
Trapping is not instant. Expect a week or two of daily checks before damage clearly subsides. The payoff is that trapping targets the culprits and leaves beneficial insects largely alone.
When baits make sense
If habitat tweaks and traps do not keep up with feeding, iron phosphate baits that include spinosad can be effective on earwigs while posing relatively low risk to pets when labeled for garden use. Spinosad is derived from soil bacteria and acts on the insect nervous system. Apply lightly according to the label, scatter in the evening near active areas, and avoid placing baits where children or animals will find them. Reapply after heavy rain.
There are also plain spinosad sprays, but contact sprays can kill beneficials if applied broadly. If you must spray, target the lower foliage and do it at dusk when pollinators are absent. Avoid flowering plants. Read the label every time, since formulations and permitted uses differ.
Carbaryl and other older chemistries certainly kill earwigs, but they wipe out predators and pollinators as collateral damage and often lead to rebound pest problems. I do not recommend them in residential gardens.
Safeguarding seedlings and high-value plants
Seedlings are earwig candy. If you lose new plantings repeatedly, change the setup rather than escalating chemicals.
Use collars around the base of each seedling made from a strip of plastic cup or a ring cut from a water bottle. Press the collar a half inch into the soil. It creates a barrier that earwigs are reluctant to cross. Floating row cover fabric draped over low hoops works too, especially for lettuce and greens. Remove covers for pollination when the plants are sturdy enough to tolerate some nibbling.
For dahlias and roses, keep blooms off the soil and thin dense foliage. Water early. If you must protect a few show blooms before an event, bag individual buds overnight with mesh organza gift bags, then remove them in the morning and repeat for several nights. It is fiddly, but it spares petals without spraying.
Trade-offs and timing: don’t over-correct
I have watched a few gardens swing from earwig overpopulation to aphid explosions after aggressive treatments removed both earwigs and their predators. The best results come from staged changes. Start with moisture and shelter. Add trapping where needed. Only then consider targeted baits. As plants mature and nights warm, soft tissue toughens and becomes less attractive. Earwig feeding often calms on its own by midsummer. If you over-correct in May, you might create new problems in July.
Timing also matters with cleanups. In late winter, a tidy garden invites spring sun to hit soil early, reducing damp refuges. By the time earwig nymphs disperse, the garden is brighter and drier. If you postpone cleanup until late spring and lay a thick mulch during a wet week, you unintentionally build perfect earwig housing right when they are multiplying.
Indoors: manage the few that wander in
Most indoor sightings come after rain or landscape irrigation pushes earwigs toward structures. Vacuum them up, check door weatherstripping, and run a dehumidifier. Avoid sticky traps indoors unless you can shield them from pets and children, and replace them frequently. Do not spray baseboards with residual insecticides. The insects do not breed inside. Address the outdoor habitat and the trickle of visitors stops.
Special cases worth noting
Greenhouses and hoop houses can host earwig populations that behave differently. The protected environment with constant moisture and dense plantings gives them an edge. Here, tidy cultural practices are even more important. Keep aisles dry, remove dropped leaves daily, and avoid letting weed mats or landscape fabric gather debris along edges. Oil traps near doors and vents pull in a surprising number in these settings. Because beneficial insects also work in greenhouses, any spray should be used sparingly and only when scouting confirms earwigs are the primary cause of loss.
In coastal climates with foggy nights, earwigs often become flower pests, chewing petals of cosmos and dahlias even when aphids are abundant. The combination of damp nights and lush growth keeps tissue soft and inviting. If you garden in such a zone, breed for resilience: choose varieties with thicker petals and fewer tightly packed layers where moisture lingers. Space plants generously. A light morning shake of flower heads can also dislodge earwigs before they settle for the day.
What not to do
I still see people deploy beer traps for earwigs because they work for slugs. Earwigs are not strongly attracted to beer. You will catch more curious pill bugs than earwigs. Diatomaceous earth can deter them in dry conditions, but it loses effectiveness with any moisture and can harm non-target arthropods. Spraying broad-spectrum insecticides across mulch is counterproductive and encourages outbreaks of mites and aphids later.
One more temptation to resist: torching mulch or using homemade concoctions heavy on ammonia or bleach. These damage soil life and roots. Most earwig blooms are better handled with patience and small, consistent actions.
A practical plan you can adapt
If you want a simple path without micromanaging, follow this sequence:
- Week 1: Thin mulch, fix leaks, water only in the morning. Set two shelter traps and one oil trap per 100 square feet near damage. Week 2: Continue trapping at dawn. Install collars around vulnerable seedlings. Adjust exterior lighting and seal door gaps. Week 3: If damage persists, apply a light scatter of labeled spinosad bait at dusk around hot spots, keeping it off blooms. Keep trapping. Week 4: Evaluate. If damage has dropped to cosmetic levels, maintain the new watering schedule and keep one trap per bed as a monitor for another week.
Most gardens do not need to escalate beyond that. Once you find the balance that fits your climate and plant mix, earwigs fade into the background.
The bottom line on harm and control
Earwigs are not the monsters their name suggests. They are opportunists, and their presence says more about the habitat you have created than about malice from the insect world. To your family and pets, they pose no real threat. To seedlings and tender blossoms, they can be a headache during cool, damp periods. If you adjust moisture and shelter, use simple traps, and reserve baits as a last step, you can protect plants without upsetting the broader balance of your garden.
Over the years, I have come to treat earwigs as a barometer. When they surge, I look for leaks, thick mulch, and clutter, and I reassess plant spacing. When they are scarce, I keep an eye out for aphids, because the system may have tilted too far the other way. This kind of attention is what turns pest control into stewardship. It takes a little observation and a few habits, not a shelf of chemicals.
Business Name: Dispatch Pest Control
Address: 9078 Greek Palace Ave, Las Vegas, NV 89178
Phone: (702) 564-7600
Website: https://dispatchpestcontrol.com
Dispatch Pest Control
Dispatch Pest Control is a local, family-owned and operated pest control company serving the Las Vegas Valley since 2003. We provide residential and commercial pest management with eco-friendly, family- and pet-safe treatment options, plus same-day service when available. Service areas include Las Vegas, Henderson, Boulder City, North Las Vegas, and nearby communities such as Summerlin, Green Valley, and Seven Hills.
9078 Greek Palace Ave , Las Vegas, NV 89178, US
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Dispatch Pest Control is a local, family-owned pest control company serving the Las Vegas Valley since 2003. They provide residential and commercial pest management, including eco-friendly, family- and pet-safe treatment options, with same-day service when available.
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Dispatch Pest Control is based in Las Vegas, Nevada. Their listed address is 9078 Greek Palace Ave, Las Vegas, NV 89178 (United States). You can view their listing on Google Maps for directions and details.
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