Cockroaches in garden

[SELonOwner]

Since we moved into our home almost a year ago we have been working our way through clearing the massively overgrown garden but whilst doing this have noticed not only is the soil riddled with woodlice, beetles, worms etc but also cockroaches 😬
Last summer unfortunately some made their way into our home so we called in pest controllers who confirmed they were German cockroaches. They believed only a few must have made it into the house and since they've treated it we haven't seen any more indoors.
We hoped the winter would have killed off any outside but unfortunately after some gardening this week I can see loads more.
Has anyone else had this issue and knows what to do to get rid of them? Our garden is pretty large and full of rotting vegetation which we are working our way through clearing (also just had a baby so progress is slow!)
We have tried to keep them away from the house with diatomaceous earth but clearly they are still alive and kicking elsewhere!
Anyone experienced this or knows others who have? I'm itching just thinking about it!

Thanks in advance!!

Are you sure they’re not just May bugs (cockchafers)

Once you remove their habitat they'll move on, just hopefully not into your home. I'd assume clearing it slowly is the best bet as they have a chance to move off to other areas. They have to live somewhere and gardens are meant to be fully of wildlife.

I have to say that they are unlikely to be German Cockroaches (blattella germanica), if living in the garden, as this species is very much a domestic dweller and would struggle to survive in an outdoor environment, firstly because they are very cold sensitive, secondly, they like to secrete themselves in tight cracks and crevices and, thirdly, their diet is heavy in meat, sugary substances and fats, all of which are not abundant in an outdoor environment. How big are they? Can you post a picture for better id?

You say that your garden is 'riddled' with woodlice, worms and beetles - with respect, do you not think that these creatures are not abundant in ANY garden, that they are not all beneficial and neccessary for the breakdown of organic matter and that, unless you live in a hermetically sealed box, you will be surrounded by them wherever you live? Not being snippy OP, but we ALL share our homes and gardens with other living things!

Yes gardens have bugs, you'd be surprised how many.

What do you mean it is full of rotting vegetation?

It’s far more likely that you have cockchafers in your garden OP.
Some years ago they destroyed lawns around here and we had swarms of them - thankfully never in the house.
I didn’t think that cockroaches were found outside?

If you post a picture we can tell you whether they are cockchafers. There really are loads this year. My chickens are having a constant feast since every time I dig I seem to find more larvae. They do look like people imagine cockroaches to look (although actually quite different to the way cockroaches actually look and more like the scarab beetles to which they are related)

I think you’d only have lots of cockroaches in your garden if you had piles of rubbish and food everywhere. Normal domestic gardens aren’t really the right type of environment for them

Are you in the UK?

If you are in Britain they won’t be cockroaches. They are house dwellers not garden dwellers.
Cockchafers , as pps have mentioned ? (Maybugs). I love them so much ! They have a long life cycle so you get more some years than others. Totally harmless.
All healthy gardens have woodlice, beetles and worms. Saying “riddled” suggests that you think this is a bad thing ? Why ?

Thanks everyone for the input. No issue with woodlice etc, I understand that means it's healthy soil and we have no intention to try and get rid of these.
Pest control have confirmed they are cockroaches after looking at them outside and were also surprised as they didn't think they lived in gardens in the UK, nor did we.
Anyway I was really just wondering if anyone had has the same issue and had any advice but doesn't sound like anyone has so thanks for the replies and hopefully they will move on once we manage to clear the rest of the garden! 🤞

I have the same problem! Am so glad to have read your post. Pest control company said that roaches do not live in the garden but like you I have seen them there. When I was weeding and cleaning up fallen leaves I saw loads of them. In the hot weather we have had the back door open and come dusk they start wandering into the house. I've caught them coming in! If I keep the doors closed I don't see any. I have taken pictures and today tried to make a video of me picking up leaves to show them the cockroaches ARE living outside. They have so far been very dismissive and are insisting that the house needs spraying! I am so frustrated as I do not feel this will fix the issue if they are living and multiplying outside the house...

Can you throw some bait out? The one that kills the cockroach nests.

Can you post a picture here? So the rest if us know what to look for?

I’ve had the same thing! Noticed them coming in last year, had pest control out who seemed confused by them. Had the house inside and out sprayed, £400 😪and they’re back this year. Similar timing August / September. Like you I see them outside when gardening. Some must sneak in. I try not to open windows now. I hate it. I’ll see if I can get a photo of one

This is a photo of one of the pesky critters...another weird thing about these cockroaches is that they don't seem to mind the light

Are you sure it’s a cockroach and not one of the many species of longhorn beetle?

Try getting an id from your local natural history group or from a natural history museum, rather than from a pest control firm who have a vested interest in identifying them as cockroaches. Or use iSpot, but you’ll need a much better photo than that

Here is one of the ones we have in our garden currently. Tried everything and they just seem to be everywhere 😞

Use diatomaceous earth if you must, it dries them up and kills them.

You need to get rid of all those insects OP!

It used to be said that they would be the sole survivors of a nuclear attack.

There are several species of native cockroach. I thought two but I double checked and fell down a cockroach rabbit hole.

https://www.lnhs.org.uk/index.php/articles-british/592-cockroacheswanted

My (possibly outdated) knowledge of them was they live outside and are not infesting species. Although, like any garden creepy crawly, one might get carried inside or wander in under its own steam. I always believed them to be confined to the south of Britain. I've only seen them once, on a heath above Kynance Cove. Although I once caught a small cockroach in the kitchen of a holiday home in Dorset that I always suspected was a native that had blundered indoors. The property was spotless and a very thorough look-see didn't turn up any others.

Thank you this is really interesting, we live in South London and have only seen a handful in the house since moving here a year ago, we were told by pest control we don't have an infestation indoors but definitely outdoors there are a lot. We have tried diatomaceous earth already and this worked to some extent last summer in keeping them away from the perimeter of the house but bow noticing them again on a regular basis. Obviously aware gardens have insects (!) but would quite like to be able to leave the doors and windows open in the summer months without ending up with a cockroach infestation indoors!

In my experience pest controllers knowledge can be quite narrow, they know what they need to do their job. Obviously NAPCOALT 😁 You could do with getting the cockroach species identified. If the London Natural History Society are still running the survey I think you should send them some. The three native species (Dusky, Tawny and Lesser) are definitely not going to infest your house. I don't know about the other species that have recently been found in this country though. I think it's unlikely they're infesting species or they'd have been noticed before now. They're likely just part of the garden's fauna. If you've got a healthy population outside they're more likely to blunder indoors.

London does seem prone to being a gateway to exotic species of plants and animals. Cities can have microclimates that can be hospitable to species that otherwise wouldn't survive outside. I think I've heard that German cockroaches (an infesting species) can survive outside. Oriental cockroaches (another infesting species) are quite dark, so I don't think that's what you photographed. Australian and American cockroaches are quite large and winged when fully grown. In my experience (very out of date and NW England) they're relatively rare.

I can massively relate to this post. I live in East London, bought a very nice house here in January and have spent the past 4 months battling cockroach problems. It started with them roaming outside on my terrace and then they managed to get in the house. I’m dealing with Orientals which come from the sewers and from what I’ve learned from neighbours it is a years long problem that the council have ignored. To my dismay cockroaches definitely live in the UK and can thrive outdoors during the summer. As someone with an extreme phobia I have all but set my house on fire. It’s awful - let me know if you find a solution and I will do the same.