The bane of many gardeners, especially rose-growing ones, is the gopher. While this voracious pest loves roses, they’re not fussy – in fact, there isn’t a lot they DON’T like! The pocket gopher is named for the external, fur-lined check pouches the critters use to carry food to their storage area. The thick-bodied rodents range […]
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Predators, parasites, and pathogens (disease producing organisms) are the primary groups used in the biological control of insects and mites along with many species of amphibians, birds, mammals, and reptiles. Insects that are natural enemies of pests are also referred to as beneficial insects or beneficials. The most common type of natural enemy is the
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Time – there never seems to be enough of it! I’m always looking for ways to better manage my time. While I love working in my garden, I’d like more time to simply enjoy it. That got me thinking about possible ways to give roses the care they need and conserve time and energy. Here
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Big-eyed bug adults and nymphs (immatures) are oval and commonly black, brownish, gray, or reddish, with a wide head, prominent antennae, and as their name implies, big bulging eyes. Adults range from about 1/8 to 1/4 inch long. They walk with a distinctive “waggle” and emit an unpleasant odor when handled. Found mostly on low-growing
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Soldier beetles are predators to a host of bad bugs including aphids and other soft bodies insects. Also known as leather-winged beetles, adults are less than half an inch long, and straight-sided with a red, orange, or yellow head and abdomen. Larvae are elongated and cylindrical except flattened on top, and have distinct, rounded segments.
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With the last substantial rains being a distant memory, summer temperatures and low humidity are ideal conditions for spider mites – a scourge of the season for roses and lots of other plants. Spider mites are related to spiders and ticks. With eight legs and an oval body 1/20 of an inch-long, they look like
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Grrrrr – while merrily tending my roses, I’ve come across another victim of the dreaded beast – the gopher. If this is not one of the gardening challenges you face, you can stop reading now. Since I live in gopher heaven, each season I have to deal with the damage from this voracious pest. And
Lizards are definitely good for the garden. These easy to identify inhabitants, with their dry, scaly skin, four legs with clawed feet, and long tail, are generally six to nine inches long. You might find them basking in warm, sunny places or scampering around rocks, brush piles or other small, confined areas, fences and buildings.
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The ethereal green lacewing is one of the more recognizable garden “good guys.” With its slender pale green body, delicate gossamer wings, and immense golden eyes, it gives the appearance of a fairy prancing on garden leaves rather than the aggressive predator that it is. Lacewings, also called aphid lions, are natural enemies of several
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Spiders get a bad rap; many people go to great lengths to get rid of them. Is it their other-worldly appearance? Concern about being bitten by a poisonous type or simply the idea of “creepy, crawling” things? Whatever the reason, before eliminating them, it’s good to understand the invaluable role they play keeping pest populations
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