Insects Archives – Page 2 of 6 – Strength Of The Small

Ladybugs Spiders Insects Garden Decor Flowers Shrubs & Trees Gardening High Desert

Loving Warm Weather

By JM PerezMay 25, 20202 min read948 views

I do not know about the rest of you, but we are enjoying the warm weather here. This week has been really good and we accomplished so much around the yard. With most plants flowering all around my property at the same time, I am realizing that most of them are yellow. From Daylilies, Rose trees, Climbing roses, Gladiolus, Gopher plants, Silvery Cassia, Yellow bird of Paradise bush, Green Feathery Senna, California Poppy, to Scotch and French Broom shrubs, … etc!

Spartium Junceum, also known as Spanish Broom, Rush Broom and Weaver’s broom, is a medium sized shrub which produces clusters of abundant bright yellow pea-like flowers. Spanish Broom is closely related to the other Brooms, with the exception of the honey-vanilla scent that the flowers from the Spanish Broom emit. They are drought tolerant and deer resistant.
This evergreen shrub is self-sowing and due to its prolific seed production, has been classified as a noxious weed. The plant is poisonous to humans and livestock.

I love ladybugs and I love the fact that they are beneficial garden insects. They are a favorite to gardeners, as they help keep garden pests at bay. Some ladybugs are omnivores, feeding on soft bodied insects such as mealybugs, aphids, scale insects, spider mites, eggs of the European corn borer and Colorado potato beetle. Other ladybugs are herbivores, feeding only on plant material and fungi, such as mildew. Ladybugs lay many eggs and the larvae immediately begin to feed as soon as they hatch.

As the weather warms up, Black Widow Spiders come out.

I spotted a lone Green Stink Bug (Chinavia Halaris), also known as Say’s Stink Bug on a Daylily Bud.

Mosquitoes too, love warm temperatures. We had a pretty wet late Winter and early Spring, and along came mosquitoes. Click here to learn how to protect yourselves.

So far is it a good year for all the plants in my gardens. The amount of rainfall we’ve had since the beginning of the year has made a huge difference by giving everything a good start.

I hope you are all enjoying the warm weather while being productive and staying safe.

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By JM Perez

Butterflies Insects Nature High Desert

Beautiful Butterflies

By JM PerezApril 24, 20191 min read706 views

The Photinia Fraseri shrubs are in full bloom all over my front and backyard, attracting swarms of Painted Lady butterflies, Small Cabbage White butterflies, bees and other insects. It’s quite a sight to watch them fly around and my kids are loving it. My husband got one of the butterflies to rest on a tiny rock, and I was able to capture the picture below. Their outbreak this year is a pleasant surprise.

*Painted Lady Butterfly resting on a rock.*

I found a dead Painted Lady Butterfly by my mail box. Since I was unable to see the undersides of the first butterfly I found last month, I carefully flipped this one around and snapped a picture. I love the colors and details on its wings; it’s such a beautiful insect.

I had a tough time taking a picture of The Small Cabbage White. It was all over the place.

I hope you are enjoying these beautiful butterflies in your gardens.

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By JM Perez

Mosquitoes Animals Ground Squirrel Insects

Strong Winds Today

By JM PerezApril 9, 20192 min read925 views

Santa Ana winds are back with a vengeance with gusts as high as 25 mph (and could occasionally gust over 40 mph). Loose dirt and debris are flying out in all directions and not too long a large branch fell from a neighbor’s Elm Tree. The air quality is currently very unhealthy. As for my allergies, I can only pray they do not flare-up. I am hoping we do not have power outages.

It’s been so long, so much that I can’t remember the last time I saw mosquitoes until yesterday. They seem to have made a comeback. I don’t know what attracts them to my yard as I do not have standing water nor have I seen a single breeding ground. The thought of not being able to work out in the yard was so unbearable and my kids can’t stand them; so I sprayed Ortho Home Defense Backyard Mosquito and Bug around the house and they are now all gone. I am also in the process of treating the yard with Mosquito Barrier.

There are strange mushroom popping here and there and I read somewhere that mosquitoes are attracted to their smell. I will look around and get rid of every single one of them.

For the past months, we failed to capture a ground squirrel that burrowed under the garage foundation. We were helpless in front of the potential structural damages and spent money on products which didn’t work (Tomcat® Ready-to-Spray Mole and Gopher Repellent, AMDRO Gopher Gasser, Sweeney’s Poison Peanuts Bait, Squirrel Cage Trap, etc.)

This particular squirrel would spend its nights on our property and spend its days on the property across from ours. We bought AMDRO Mole & Gopher Tunnel Trap and had no success for the first two days as the squirrel just created an opening next to the device. On the third day, which was Sunday, it worked. It was such a nuisance. Good riddance. What a relief!

Now, if we could only capture the gopher which has been destroying the younger trees, everything will be awesome.

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By JM Perez

Butterflies Insects Weather Flowers Shrubs & Trees Gardening

Spring is Nearing

By JM PerezMarch 12, 20191 min read1K views

As Spring is nearing, bulbs are emerging out of the ground and buds are appearing on trees. The night seems to be getting a lot colder and we’ve had quite a bit of rain lately.

A lone Grape Hyacinth …

Purple-Leaf Cherry Plum trees have began flowering and leafing out.

*Purple-Leaf Cherry Plum (flowers and buds).*

Navajo Globe Willow are leafing out.

Julia Rose Itoh Peony is sprouting and looking healthy.

Butterflies and moths are out …
I found a Painted Lady Butterfly (also known as the cosmopolitan) resting on the driveway. I love its orange-brown wings with black and white spots on forewing. I didn’t get to see its undersides, which has a black, brown, and gray pattern with four tiny eyespots.

We are still enjoying our beautiful mountains covered in snow.

Wishing you all happy moments during these last days of Winter.

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By JM Perez

Spiders Insects High Desert

Cloudy Weather

By JM PerezFebruary 28, 20181 min read681 views

It has been raining a lot lately, mostly at night. It’s cold, the winds are insane and the weather is gloomy. Did I mention that it snowed quite a bit yesterday? Our weather is so unpredictable, making it hard to get used to.

Some fascinating creatures seem to emerge from hiding after a good rainfall.

Those gray clouds are moving slowly, but surely.

The gray clouds are getting thicker by the hour and the beautiful snowy mountains are now completely covered. Remember our Statue Reconstruction back in 2013? We finally completed it on New Years and placed her in the center of the backyard arch. She is absolutely gorgeous an graces the space.