Despite the hectic weather, it felt good stepping out today and watching the wind send leaves flying everywhere in the backyard as I slowly made my way towards the front porch. It was time to bring my Boston Fern indoors. I walked around the backyard and spent a couple of minutes with my Roses. These are some of the moments I cherish the most. Growing and caring for Roses is hard work as it demands a lot of determination, time, patience and love. In the end it pays a thousandfold and I have had a wonderful year with my Roses.
French Lace Rose.Little Pete Mini-multiflora Rose.Blue Moon Rose Bud.
On my way to collect the trash can from the street earlier in the week, I couldn’t resist stopping by my Rose Garden where a couple of rose bushes where blooming. As I began taking pictures of the beautiful blooms, I spotted a large Green Valley Grasshopper (from its rather large size, I believe it’s a female). I can’t tell if the insect was just hanging out, perhaps resting from a long flight or just getting ready to feed on my plants.
Green Valley Grasshopper.Spartan Floribunda Rose.
Today my heart is particularly filled with gratitude for the gift of Life and beauty in the World.
What a change and what a lovely day! The winds have finally settled down, the dirt has hardened a little from the little rain we had on Monday and the thick grey clouds melted away. There was no damages to the plants and structures; but a backyard covered with so many tumbleweeds. I didn’t mind as I was happy to see a beautiful blue sky, the mountains covered in snow and some of my late blooming perennials.
Snowy Mountains.
I was so delighted to see my Mums all in bloom. They are easy to grow, low maintenance and late bloomers. I am growing mine in containers along with other Fall perennials. They have remained green for a very, very long time and just recently burst open with bright colors ranging from red to yellow. More information here.
Chrysanthemums.
I love Dianthus and mine seem to surprise me every day with a new color. I love the varieties.
A few Dianthus variety.
As I was walking around my Rose Garden, I saw a huge dried up stem which snapped as soon as I pulled on it to expose a tiny cream-colored larvae. According to the website fs.usda.gov (USDA Forest Service – US Department of Agriculture), adult flat headed wood borers are small to relatively large beetles with small antennae and a characteristic oval body shape and they are called metallic wood borers because they are iridescent or metallic looking underneath and sometimes on top. Larvae are white, legless grubs similar to bark beetle larvae, but the body shape is elongated, and the head area is different than bark beetle larvae. They attack stressed, dying, or dead trees and can also attack freshly cut timber before it is dried.
For more information, click here to download the PDF file.
Flat Headed Borer Larva.
Can you see the Brown Marmorated Stink Bug below? I wouldn’t have noticed it if it wasn’t for my husband. What a clever attempt to camouflage and blend into its surroundings.
We had a fun weekend rich in discoveries, especially for my kids.
On Friday, while visiting Linda Marie’s Enchanted Treasures in Oro Grande, my son spotted a Paper Wasp.
According to Wikipedia, paper wasps are 0.7 to 1.0 inch (1.8 to 2.5 cm)-long wasps that gather fibers from dead wood and plant stems, which they mix with saliva, and use to construct water-resistant nests made of gray or brown papery material. Paper wasps are also sometimes called umbrella wasps, due to the distinctive design of their nests. Unlike yellowjackets and hornets, which can be very aggressive, polistine paper wasps will generally only attack if they themselves or their nest are threatened. Paper wasps feed on nectar, and other insects, including caterpillars, flies, and beetle larvae. Because they are a known pollinator and their diet of known garden pests, paper wasps are often considered to be beneficial by gardeners.
However, beneficial wasps can quickly become a nuisance to urban society. They pack a powerful, painful sting that can cause severe allergic reaction and even death in some human victims.
Paper Wasp.
On Saturday, while spending time in the backyard, my little explorer of a Son found what seems to be a Beetle with a stinger or retractable ovipositor (an organ located at the end of the abdomen used by female insects to lay eggs. It could also be used as a piercing, stinging organ in many parasitic species such as Wasps).
It looks similar to the Darkling Beetle, however, it was our first time seeing one with an ovipositor. I will inquire about this insect on WhatsThatBug.com. In the mean time, any information about this insect will be greatly appreciated.
Beetle with Ovipositor.
On Sunday morning, I spotted a Red-shafted Northern Flicker woodpecker on one of our next door neighbor’s tallest Pine Trees. They have red feather shafts and red on the underside of their tail feathers (as you can see on the picture below). The male and female differ in that only the male has red whisker marks. Unlike other woodpeckers, Northern Flickers prefer to hunt for insects on the ground. They eat nuts, ants, seeds, berries, beetle larvae as well as other insect larva. Click here or here to learn more about this bird.
Red-shafted Northern Flicker.
Thanks to the awesome weather, I did some gardening and got my hands dirty. I transplanted the last four Pendula Yucca sprouts to the new designed area in the backyard and my Mint into a large planter. My husband build a primitive wood planter for the “Peach Blossom” hybrid Oleander (the only I kept from last months giveaway). I removed spent fronds from my Palm Tree.
Primitive Wood Planter.
To top it all off, we spend our night looking at the stars under a gorgeous full moon.
For over a month now, I have noticed random holes in some of my Rose bush buds. I blamed the ants and other tiny insects. This afternoon I found a pinkish worm burrowing and eating its way into a bud (using the petals as food source). Due to their size and the color of the buds, the larvae can be hard to notice too.
Pre-pupatory Larva of a Glistening Caerulean burrowed in a Rose bud.Pre-pupatory Larva of a Glistening Caerulean.Hole in a Rose Bud caused by a Budworm.
When next you’re working around your Garden and you see a bunch of holes on your Rose buds (or any other bud), simply hand pick the worm and dispose of it.
I found an interesting blog post which talks more about the life history of this Glistening Caerulean. Click here.
From the moment I woke up to get my Son ready for school, I knew the day would be different. The weather is amazing, the air is fresh and the atmosphere is peaceful. Cloudy like, but with clear skies. Some Rain would be nice, though I am quite content and grateful for the moment.
After dropping off my Son to school, I spent a moment in the backyard, enjoying Nature. The gladioli are flowering abundantly and beautifully. I was pleasantly surprised to discover a Brick Red Gladiolus blooming alongside the others (stunning, isn’t it?). I will be collecting seeds from Allium Drumstick, Snapdragon and Gladiolus later in the day.
Gladiolus Pink & Purple Flowers.
Gladiolus are a lovely addition to any garden with their rich, attractive, and cheerful colors. I will be adding Gladiolus ‘Charming Beauty’ and ‘Elvira’ to my collection.
Gladiolus Brick Red & Orange Salmon Flowers.
While watering my Gladiolus in the front yard yesterday morning, a little green insect jumped out of the watering area. At first I thought it was a camel cricket or young nymph (grasshopper) until I saw it’s brown stinger. It moved and jumped so fast that I was unable to capture a clear picture. Perhaps a young Katydid?
By JM Perez
