It always happens like this: you get up, still half asleep, and all you want is a coffee, open the belief with a mechanical gesture … and here they are there. Small butterflies that flutter as if it were full spring, between packs of pasta, cereals and flours. It is the beginning of the nightmare: the food tarmes invaded your pantry.
It really happened to me. A horrifying show, worthy of the famous “Alien”, for the occasion in a biological and home version. I had to declare war, a real war, complete with humid cloths, vinegar, and garbage envelopes. All because – probably – of a pack of biological beans bought in the wholesale. Ironically: I had chosen the healthiest food, and I ended up nourishing a colony of larvae. So here, as a veteran of this battle, my guide to recognize, fight and avoid future invasions.
How to recognize the food tarms?
The protagonist of our history is the Plodia Interpunctellaalso called the Tignola del Food, a grain -wrapped tignola or more commonly tarma of food. With the naked eye, they look like harmless butterflies: they measure about 2 cm, they have grayish wings with copper reflections, and flutter slowly, but constant. The problem, however, are not them, but the larvae, those small whitish worms, often invisible to a first glance, which insinuate themselves into the parcels of cereals, flour, rice, pasta, dried fruit and chocolate. And in there, they multiply, silent, operational, tireless.
What are the signals not to ignore?
The most cruel detail? We take them home, with the shopping, and welcome them with open arms, without even knowing it.
Accurate cleaning: the first obligatory step
Once the presence of the tarmes have been ascertained, do not panic, even if you have to act quickly. The first step? Completely empty the pantry. Yes, everything: even those packages still closed that seem completely innocent.
Then, with patience and a little inner strength, you have to throw away any contaminated and/or suspicion food. Maybe the larvae do not see each other, but the eggs could be there anyway, so better not to risk.
The next weapon for our battle is thewhite vinegar. Use it to disinfect every surface, each shelf and every corner with a soaked cloth.
For deeper cleaning, you could consider the idea of using a mixture of vinegar and bicarbonate, for a deeper action.
Prevention: grandmother’s remedies still work
Once the area is cleaned, the phase I prefer comes into play: the creative prevention. And here the old remedies of the grandmother, the simple, natural and often fragrant, come to the rescue.
Essential oils
The tarmes detest certain smells. Lavender, mint, bay leaf, to give some examples, are among their worst nightmares. I keep Provencal lavender bags in the wall units, and every now and then I find them with a few drops of mint essential oil. A personal touch? I add a few bay leaf in the flour jars.
Cloves, but with caution
Another smell strongly unwelcome to insects is that of cloves. I can’t stand it – the dentist reminds me – but many swear about their effectiveness. They can be put directly in the jars or bags.
The Camembert trap
It looks like a joke, but it works. Take a cheese box (empty), peel the lid, and put inside the bay leaves and the balls soaked in essential oil. It is discreet, odorless (for us), but terrible for the tarmes.
More “technological” traps: stickers with pheromones
When the infestation is serious, it takes something more direct. Adhesive traps with pheromones are a godsend: they attract males, block them on the sticky surface, and prevent they reproduce. It is my secret weapon: I put it in the wardrobes and control every week. Works.
Remember only to replace them every month, otherwise they will become useless, and disturbing, “decorations”.
Intelligent conservation: how to avoid new invasions
Last point, but not less important, concerns the food conservation. Act this way:
A further trick? Put the new products (especially the Bius Biusi) in the freezer for 48 hours before storing them. The eggs of the tarmes, if present, will not survive.
What if they come back?
It could happen, even if I had adopted all the precautions in the world. In that case, breathe, rolled up the sleeves and Repeat the cleaning operationsa definitely boring passage, but believe me: it is better to act immediately than find yourself living in a loft shared with the larvae.
The food tarmes are stubborn, discreet and decidedly hungry, but with a little attention and some precautions (well closed jars, unwelcome perfumes and well -placed traps) your kitchen will be able to return to being yours alone.
