Recently in butterflies, bugs and spiders Category

Aack! Attack of the squash borer!
This worm infected two of my squash plants, including the volunteer the came up next to the strawberries.
I have heard of using floating row covers to prevent the moth from laying eggs, but I have not been successful at keeping them out. I did an online search, and I found this post on the Dirt Doctor forum helpful:

To prevent the vine borer from laying eggs, many people recommend using a floating row cover. The moth that infests the plants finds them by brushing up against the spines on the stalks of the plant, the theory is if they are covered, they won't be as easy to detect. I have never tried it, but lots of people seem to think it works.
Some say that a late planting of squash will avert infestation, this has never worked for me. I have gardened in San Antonio and Dallas and I cannot seem to pinpoint the lifecycle of the borer well enough to completely miss either generation. Perhaps there is not as much of a distinction between the spring and late summer generatios as there are in some other parts of the country...

There are two basic approaches to fixing a borer problem that I have found to be effective. The first is to inject a Bt "liquid worm killer" (the one I use is made by greenlight) with a large hypodermic needle. The vascular system of the plant will only carry it so far, however, so you have to kind of estimate how far the worm has penetrated, and try squirting it in both directions from the point of entry. Along the same lines, I have used Dipel dust (a Bt product also made by greenlight) and sprinkled it on the base of the plant every few days.

Procedure #2 is a little more involved, but I chose to use this method today on about fifteen of my summer squash plants. Using a box cutter or sharp knife, slit the base of the stem vertically (not against the "grain" of the vascular system, or it won't heal and will just kill the plant) and digging the little boogers out manually. Crude but effective. You should then bury the wounded part of the plant under a mound of moist earth to promote healing and root growth. It works more often than not...

Sorry this was so long but the struggle against the squash vine borer has been a multigenerational conflict of epic proportions in my family

Comments (1)

Categories: butterflies, bugs and spiders | vegetables and fruits |

Have you noticed fewer butterflies in your garden this year?
I know I have. Last year, the flowers were covered in butterflies during the day. This year, I'm lucky to see two at a time, and I've only seen a few caterpillars eating the dill.
Well, there is an answer, but it doesn't look like it's as terrible as what's been afflicting the honeybees. Read the Dallas Morning News story.

Comments (0)

Categories: butterflies, bugs and spiders |

I was sitting on my front porch last weekend, eating watermelon, when I noticed some drooping branches on some dill that bolted in the front garden bed. I examined the plant a little closer, and was delighted to find at least three fat and happy caterpillars chomping down on the dill.
I have planted tons of things in the front specifically to attract butterflies and their larvae, so I was really excited to see the caterpillars. It was also a really cool opportunity to show my son real caterpillars.
I'm not really sure what kind of caterpillars they are. I did a quick scan of What's that bug? and found an photo that looked really similar of a black swallowtail butterfly caterpillar, which I don't recall seeing in the yard last year. I've ruled out Monarch, Queen and Hackberry, which I've seen in the garden before.
If you know what it is, write in a let me know!

Comments (1)

Categories: butterflies, bugs and spiders |

Name this bug!

My son found one of these as he was pulling chard in the garden this past weekend. I didn't think much of it at the time -- except to point out its color and explain that it was an insect -- until my husband spotted another one on the olive tree we were pruning.

I did a little Internet searching, and "Assassin bug" kept popping up as an option, but I don't think it is.

Continue reading "What is this bug?" »

Comments (1) | TrackBack (0)

Categories: butterflies, bugs and spiders |

I'd like to identify this little guy.

I was gathering pecans one weekend afternoon and came across this little caterpillar in the garden. I have been searching through catalogs to figure out what it is for the past few weeks, but I still can't figure out what it is.

Comments (1) | TrackBack (0)

Categories: butterflies, bugs and spiders |

Monarch butterflies moved through Austin on their yearly fall migration to Mexico in October. I really enjoyed watching them flutter around my front yard garden among the Queen butterflies.
Several weeks ago I saw a story on World News Tonight about a nationwide project to help the Monarch butterflies make it to Mexico.

Continue reading "Monarch migration" »

Comments (0) | TrackBack (0)

Categories: butterflies, bugs and spiders |

My "rock outcrop"

I checked out the Fall Plant Festival at the Lady Bird Johnson Wildflower Center over the weekend and walked away with almost a dozen native plants and a couple of ideas for my own garden.

We first walked around the center and stumbled across the butterfly garden. Lately, I've been especially interested in planting for the butterflies, so this was an area I lingered in. There was one spot that had been built up with rocks and soil and other plants. The placard said the rocky outcrop was great for giving butterflies a sunny, dry area to hang out.

Continue reading "Building for butterflies" »

Comments (0) | TrackBack (0)

Categories: butterflies, bugs and spiders |

This is a Monarch butterfly, which also loves the Gregg's Mistflower.

I found the COOLEST website the other day while trying to identify that little worm that was devouring my bean plants.

Whatsthatbug.com is site full of photos and letters from people who have found interesting, creepy and weird bugs and need help identifying them. The folks at What's that Bug? do the research and even label some bug encounters as "unnecessary carnage."

I found myself cruising the site for a few hours looking at photos or caterpillars and butterflies -- not even scratching the surface of all that's on the site.

And I love the message -- learning to appreciate the beauty of insects and other creatures, rather than just mindlessly killing what we don't understand.

It was while look through What's that Bug? that I finally identified a butterfly that has been hanging out in my front yard by the dozens for the past several months. The Queen butterfly has some of the same markings as a Monarch on the underside of its wings, but when it spreads them out, you can really see the difference.

Continue reading "Really cool insect site" »

Comments (0) | TrackBack (0)

Categories: butterflies, bugs and spiders |

I don't know what kind of larvae it is, but it sure likes my bean plants.

I've been keeping a close eye on my bean plants for the past week after noticing something had been eating them.

One day I found this (the worm in the photo on the right). Well, they were actually a little smaller (I guess they grew since I first discovered them). They were on every leaf, but I had to look really carefully for them because they had curled an edge of the leaves over themselves and made a little tunnel to hide in.

They had made mincemeat of the leaves.

Continue reading "Name that worm" »

Comments (1) | TrackBack (0)

Categories: butterflies, bugs and spiders |

Gregg's Mistflower attracts loads of butterflies to my garden

I've discovered a new love in my garden... butterflies.

Last spring, a friend gave me some Gregg's Blue Mist from her garden, which I promptly planted between the olive trees in my front yard.

It was kind of scraggly at first, but the shot of rain we had through most of the first part of the summer really made it take off. (Not surprising because mistflower loves moist conditions.)

Now, it calls butterflies and moths of all kinds. I've seen Swallowtails, but I've especially enjoyed watching the Monarch butterflies that whip around it. I've tried to take pictures of them, but so far they haven't let me get close enough before they take off and wait for me to leave before landing again.

Continue reading "Attracting butterflies" »

Comments (0) | TrackBack (0)

Categories: butterflies, bugs and spiders |