Blooms for Friday

Thanks everyone for telling me that I have
been sent the wrong flowers. I thought that silly
fake phlox looked more like a Sweet William or a
Dianthus.Since returning it to the company is out of
the question I guess it will have to stay. Maybe it was
just an honest mistake on the nurseries part.
It is definitely not what I ordered but it is a flower ;-)
She will have to be moved this fall though because she
does not belong in that part of the garden.




Now it is on to " Fertilizer Friday" and thanks
to Tootsie at Tootsie Time for sponsoring a
fantastic way to flaunt those flowers.
Come join in over at Tootsie's and Flaunt your Flowers!



This is the first time that I have grown Morning Glory
Bushes convoivulus from seed and I am loving them.
I saw the little charmer one one of these great garden
blogs on Botanical and just had to try it.
The Morning Glory vines take over a large area and
sometimes seed into places I do not want them. These
bushes can be grown in containers easily. You get all
the beauty of morning glories but in a compact plant.
I got the mixed seeds and have blue, pink and white
blooms with bright yellow centers. Of course the blue
ones are my favorite.They are a true blue though my
pictures may not always show them off as such.
The different light angles make them appear
purple sometimes. If you do put them into containers
be sure to add other flowers to the mix because they
close their blooms in the afternoon.










Oh, by the way, the Japanese Beetles love them too
as you can see from all of the holes in the leaves.
The little pests.









































Happy Gardening Everyone and Flaunt Those Flowers!

Remember June Bugs ? ?

Can you believe June is all but gone? I do not
know where the month went. Time goes fast
when your having fun working in the garden
or playing in the flowers. Our time of the year.
It has been such a great month once the warm
temperatures decided to come in and stay around.
It has also been a month of fighting with the critters,
such as the deers and the impolite raccoons.
Now it is time to deal with those dreaded little
Japanese beetles that love to munch on the Roses,
Hollyhocks and Rose of Sharon blooms,although
they have beaten my Rose of Sharon blooms this year.



I posted this picture on my nature blog and
one of my blogging friends and I started
reminiscing about remembering when we
were younger and as kids how there use to
be June Bugs that came out everywhere in
June, thus the name June Bug, I gather ;-)

Do any of you remember seeing June Bugs?
They use to be just thick when I was a kid,
if you have not seen them before it is alright.
It has been over--- years since we have seen
any around. Seems like ancient history now.



Anyway, the pesky Japanese beetles look just
like baby June bugs. June bugs however are twice
the size of the Japanese beetles. I cannot remember
whether the June beetles did damage to the gardens
or flowers then or not. Kids, you know how they are
Summer is for playing outdoors without shoes,
the swimming hole at the creek, and in June you
ran around catching Lightening bugs and June bugs.

June bugs use to swarm all over the yard and in the
grass and we thought it was great fun to catch them,
they tickle your hand while your holding them.
Okay, so we did not have loads of toys and electronic
contraptions. We found our fun with the simple
things and a lot of imagination.
It was fun reminiscing about something so simple
that we both had experienced that is now no
longer around.

If You Hang It They Will Come

I am so excited. No, I have not shot all the Tulip
eating deers. I have some new visitors in the garden.
I use to see all the pictures from fellow gardeners of
their beautiful Blue birds and we had not a one in our
yard. I wanted them here so much because their coloring
just fascinated me.
So last Fall I put up a Blue bird house hoping to draw some
into the yard. I did not have high hopes of succeeding since
there were none around but I will try anything once.

I looked out the window one day to see if any birds were
going in or out of the birdhouse figuring that some kind
probably would move in but not the Blue birds I was hoping
for. I saw a couple of birds going in and out and decided to get
a closer look to see what they were.
I could not believe my eyes when low and behold I saw bright
blue and orange feathers. I was so happy. Naturally I had to
run back into the house and grab the camera.
They were a little shy so I got a few far off shots of them.
I am hoping that when they get use to seeing me out in the
gardens they will not be so leery of me and I can get better
pictures of them.
Since they are now here I may have to get some more Blue
bird houses to draw in more of the beauties.

One new visitor that I am not excited about is the Brown headed
Cow birds. These were new to me and I had to look them up to
see just what they were.
When I first saw them at the feeder I wasn't paying them
much attention thinking it was those old pesky Grackles,
but upon closer examination I spotted the brown head on the
male and he was paying court to a brown female bird and
I knew it was an all together different bird.
Finding out that they were song birds was fine but when I read
they are a parasite bird that steals the nests of other birds I
was not as happy to have another new bird in the yard.
Upon reading that they forage on the ground around cows and
horses and once followed bison on the great plains I was hoping
they would move on down the road to the farm areas.
Once where I had spotted just the two has turned in to half a
dozen or more.
They are a pretty bird but I hate to think about them rooting
out my Cardinals or Robins to get their nests.

The Good , the Bad, the Ugly, and the Beauty of 2008

Cockle-Burrs or Devils Claws

Not only are they an Ugly and useless weed,
they are also the Bad.
I wrote a posting on what a plague that they are
to farmers, animals, and pets alike. Not to mention to
what an ugly, nasty mess they can make when getting
into a child's hair.




Asian Ladybug's or Ladybird's

These little invaders are Ugly and sad to say are
also Bad.
I wrote a posting on them not being your lovable
Ladybug but an invasive beetle that is taking over
your sweet little ladybug.
Not only that it has no enemies and invades homes
and buildings, and with them a awful smell and brown
stains.




The Orange Trumpet Vine

This is the Bad. Very Bad!
In my posting of Dye Trumpet Vine, Please Die!
I tell of the invasive old orange Trumpet Vine and its
shoots that have literally taken over my yard and the
septic lines, and though has been cut down for five years
still refuses to die.




The Scent of Lilac's

In Spring the Beauty and a Beautiful Scent.



April at Her Best

The Beauty of April Showers.



The Beauty of Rhododendron's

The Beauty of May.



The Rose Parade

The Beauty of June's Roses.



Hot Pink for Hot August Days

The Beauty of Alpenglow Hydrangea.



The Bee's Knee's

The Beauty of Nature.




Autumn's Best of Show

The Beauty of a Hocking Hills Autumn.

Asian Lady Beetle Invasion Is On Again

The Invasion Is Back


Well it is that time of year again when the dreaded Asian
Lady Beetle's come in with a vengeance to try to hibernate
for the Winter. With the picking of the corn and soy beans,
the gardens dying off, and the cold weather coming in, along with
it comes these pests.
And they are pests and I for one am so sick of these little devils.
They can get into your houses in the tiniest pin hole or crack.
We have to vacuum them for weeks as they invade the insides
of our homes.
They are dirty leaving a brown scum all over everything, and they
stink to high heaven. It is so bad the birds will not eat them. Too
bad or I could bag them up and feed it to them this Winter.
They have become a real nuisance here in Ohio and dearly
love the Hocking Hills area with all of its Pine Trees and farm
lands.




Here they are trying to get into my house. They love
getting under the siding of the house for Winter.
This is only a one foot area, now picture this all over the
outside of your house and buildings.
If you have the money you can have an exterminator spray
your house in October to kill them or your can go to your local
chain store and get a jug of "Bug Stop" and spray it all around.
I try so hard to be careful so as not to kill the bees, but I have
noticed that it does not kill Wasps so hopefully it will not hurt
the other beneficial bees and bugs.

Here is some more information on the Asian Lady Beetle
from the Ohio State University Extension Service.

Lady beetles, which are sometimes called ladybugs or lady bird beetles, are familiar insects in many parts of the United States. For the most part, lady beetles are beneficial predators that consume aphids, scale insects, and many other pests that injure plants in our gardens, landscapes, and agricultural settings. Ohio's state insect is a native species, the convergent lady beetle, Hippodamia convergens Guerin.

The multicolored Asian lady beetle is native to Asia, where it is an important predator that feeds on aphids and other soft-bodied insects that dwell in trees. In their native habitat, large aggregations of these lady beetles often hibernate (overwinter) in cracks and crevices within cliff faces. Unfortunately, in the United States where cliffs are not prevalent, they seek overwintering sites in and around buildings.

During the past decade, the multicolored Asian lady beetle has emerged as a seasonal nuisance pest in many regions of our country. It was recognized in Ohio during October 1993, when some residents reported that thousands of lady beetles were congregating on homes and buildings, with many of these insects finding their way indoors. This species is sometimes called the Halloween lady beetle because some adults are a pumpkin yellow-orange color and large populations often occur in late October coinciding with Halloween festivities.

The name "multicolored" refers to the many different color forms of the adult lady beetles. Color variants found in the United States are different shades of yellow, orange, or red, either with or without black spots on the wing covers. Some have 19 black spots while others have faded spots that vary in number and size.

The multicolored Asian lady beetle made its way into the United States through a number of accidental and planned releases. There are several reports that this species was accidentally brought on ships to various ports, notably New Orleans and Seattle. This lady beetle was also intentionally imported from Russia, Japan, Korea, and elsewhere in the Orient and released in the United States as part of a Federal effort to naturally control insect pests in trees. The rationale was that native species of lady beetles are not particularly effective in controlling tree-feeding aphids and scale insects. The Federal releases were made in California as early as 1916 and again in the mid-1960s, but the multicolored Asian lady beetle apparently failed to establish.

During the late 1970s through the early 1980s, tens of thousands of multicolored Asian lady beetles were intentionally released by the U. S. Department of Agriculture's Agricultural Research Service (USDA-ARS) in an effort to control insect pests that injure trees. The USDA-ARS coordinated the lady beetle releases in many southern and eastern states, including Ohio, Maine, Connecticut, Delaware, Pennsylvania, Maryland, Georgia, Mississippi, and Louisiana. In Ohio, a total of approximately 1,800 lady beetles was released in Cuyahoga and Lake Counties during June 1979 and July 1980. During this period, the largest USDA-ARS releases (more than 11,000 lady beetles) were made in Georgia. In addition, more than 14,000 lady beetles were released in the western United States near Yakima, Washington. Small releases were also made in the District of Columbia and in Nova Scotia, Canada. The USDA-ARS release program was eventually discontinued because failed recapture efforts suggested that the multicolored Asian lady beetle was not surviving in the United States.

Hence, there is some controversy regarding the origins of this nonnative species. Nonetheless, the multicolored Asian lady beetle is now well established in the United States, where it currently thrives in many parts of the Midwest, East, South, and Northwest. This nonnative species appears to be displacing some of our native lady beetles in Ohio.

Nuisances. Homeowners often express concern and aggravation with these nuisance pests. During late autumn, homeowners complain that multicolored Asian lady beetles cluster on the sides of houses; "crunch" under foot; get into food and drinks; alight on hands, arms, and other parts of the body; and sometimes enter the ears and mouth. The lady beetles can be so numerous that they appear to be "raining" outdoors or swarming like bees. A variety of other problems are associated with these lady beetles, as detailed below.

Home Invasion. Unlike our native species of lady beetles, the multicolored Asian lady beetle seeks protected hibernation (overwintering) sites in and around buildings. They may occur in any type of structure. Because these exotic lady beetles readily occur on trees, homes in forested areas are often infested. Multicolored Asian lady beetles often are pests in log homes, because they can slip through the cracks and crevices between the logs.
Multicolored Asian lady beetles seek protected sites where they can hibernate. Some may overwinter underneath siding, roof shingles, landscaping timbers, or leaf litter. Others readily slip through cracks and crevices and come indoors, where they make themselves at home. They may cluster together in corners of porches, attics, soffits, wall voids, door or window frames, or dark, undisturbed areas within buildings. The beetles can form large, hidden aggregations in secluded dark locations inside homes, commonly in attics and basements. They periodically invade living spaces, apparently in response to the warm interior temperatures. On warm sunny days during the winter, they tend to move about and fly within living spaces. They readily fly to windows. During the spring, these lady beetles are particularly noticeable in houses when they leave their hibernation sites and attempt to make their way outdoors.

Stains and Odor. When lady beetles are disturbed, they defend themselves by exuding a yellow-orange body fluid, which is their blood. This defense mechanism is termed reflex bleeding. The blood has a foul odor and can permanently stain walls, drapes, carpeting, etc. Thus, do not crush or swat lady beetles so as to minimize their defensive behavior.

"Bites." Although an uncommon occurrence, multicolored Asian lady beetles have been reported to nibble, nip, or "bite" humans. These lady beetles are not aggressive toward humans, and they simply may be examining an unfamiliar substrate or they may be seeking moisture.

Their occasional nibbling is not reported to break the skin or draw human blood.

Allergic Reactions. Some individuals report an allergenic response to lady beetles. Although published reports are uncommon, multicolored Asian lady beetles apparently can cause inhalant allergies. These allergies clear up once the lady beetles are removed.
Some people are sensitive or allergic to the fluid that lady beetles secrete, which can cause contact dermatitis and a stinging sensation. However, lady beetles cannot sting, because they do not possess a stinger.

Masked Bandit's Hit The Hocking Hills

There have been masked bandits making their appearance in
the Hocking Hills. A glimpse of them can be seen about
the time that the sun goes down and the moon is slowly rising to
light the night sky.
That is about the time they begin to sneak around the house to
scope out what they can steal. The degenerates are even teaching
their children their thieving ways.

No, these are not the two legged types of scoundrels but
they are the four legged, four fingered, and sometimes
upon confrontation, the "hissing bandits".

There are what I believe is "Maw Coon" and her three "Wee
Coon's" roaming around our house looking for the goods to steal.
I had to take the bird feeders down because
they were finding a way to get to them and steal all of the seed
from the "Bird family", but they can be forgiven because they
are hungry too and you have to keep your family fed.
They can be quite agile and may have back-grounds in acrobatics.
Hanging by their back legs and stretching to get to the birdseed.
If they cannot reach the goods then they will resort to destruction
of private property in the attempt to find a way to get the bird
feeder tipped and knock all of the seed upon the ground.
They have even been known to take down the feeders that are
wired to a tree limb.
Two of the suet feeders came up missing and one was finally found
caught on a bush at the edge of the woods. Where the other ended
up heaven only knows and the Bandit's are not spilling their guts
and confessing to the crime, and the Bird family are not snitching.

They come and drink from the small pond and water fountain
beside the house, which I do not mind. I enjoy watching them

but the frogs that were living there are now gone and
one does not put gold fish in there anymore.
Now, I will confess that they may be innocent of this
crime and the neighbor's cats may have been the guilty parties,
since they also come to get a drink from the pond.

They are the cleverest, thieving scoundrels at times.

The trashcan has a lever that locks the lid down,
but they have figured out how to get the lid off and
get inside the trashcans and scatter trash everywhere
while they look for something pilfer. I have not
personally seen any evidence of a bag of burglary tools
hidden beneath their fur, so they are very light fingered
and intelligent crooks.

We have resorted to tying the lids on with bungee cords,
but how soon will it be before they see their way through
our rouse and find another way to lift the lids?

As you can see they are very brazen Bandit's and
have very little fear of being incarcerated .
This one is looking back over its shoulder at me
and tauntingly saying " I will be back".

Japanese Beetle's Plague Hocking Hills

Were the Japanese Beetles one of the Seven Plagues?

Well maybe not but they are without a doubt really pesky,
little buggers. They would even be somewhat pretty if they
did not eat there weight in flowers, plants and leaves.
The Japanese Beetle is just another bug that has been introduced
into the United States where they have no natural enemies to
keep their numbers in check as they do in Japan. They were
thought to be brought into the United States in 1912 in a shipment
of Iris bulbs before inspections were mandatory and found in
a nursery in New Jersey in 1916. They have came a
"long way baby", since then and have covered the entire Eastern
section of the United States and as far west as Wisconsin and
southward to Alabama.
They love my roses, hollyhocks and are thick on my Rose of
Sharon shrubs. I want to spray them and kill them all but do not
want to endanger the diminishing honey bees, so we are left
hanging traps or just knocking them off squashing the little buggers.
Ducks will eat them but not many people have ducks around
their homes or farms these days.
They eat out big holes in the buds and blossoms of the Roses and
Rose of Sharon's and the leaves on the Holly Hock's
look like lace where they have eaten around the veins in the leaves.




There are very few flowers and plants that they do not eat and
the Ohio State University Extension claims there are 300 and that
the Japanese Beetle is one of Ohio's most abundant and important
landscape pest.

"Fly Away,Fly Away Home!" Wrong bug wish they would.