Insect Activity This Week

Insect activity in the garden can be good, and it can be unwelcome, depending on the insect. This weekend, I made the first sighting of the season of a most unwelcome moth, the squash vine borer. She is pretty, but her babies devour the insides of squash vines, eventually leading to the demise of the plants.

Flies aren’t usually considered to be the most welcome of insects, but plenty of flies are pollinators. I have been seeing flies on my parsnip flowers, and they seem to be helping the plants set seed. Look close to find the flies.

These squash bug eggs (below) were on a plant at a local community garden. It is time to scout for these bad boys, if the scouting (and removal) hasn’t already begun. Squash bugs can become so numerous that they weaken the plants, and they can spread disease among the squash plants. These eggs are hard to smash, but tearing out the bit of leaf they are on, to be bagged for the landfill, works to keep these from hatching in the garden.

The bee inside the blossom below was so frenetically busy that its legs look all crazy in this picture, but that bee-frenzy helps pollinate the plants, so we can have more good squash.

Out in gardens recently, I’ve also seen squash beetles, Mexican bean beetles, numerous pollinators, slugs (we’ve had enough rain to bring them out), and more. What have other gardeners been seeing?

Home gardening can provide a lot of good food for families and communities. It’s also some work, but I love it. This blog is about the garden and yard where I “grow my own,” NW of Atlanta, Georgia.