My Blog List

Wednesday, February 18, 2009

EATS SHOOTS AND LEAVES


But keeps coming back! For several days I have been noticing a good deal of nibbling going on in the garden. For an enclosed garden this is quite distressing. First it as the larkspur, all pruned to about 6''. Then today I noticed blue eyed grass.


Then some desert succulents growing in a little pot.


I also noticed a lot of empty stalks on my violas and wine cups. I have been setting the havahart every night but nothing so far. I have a feeling it is the cotton rats as I saw one a couple of weeks ago.
To crown everything the harlequin bugs turned up today. I guess the 80 degree temperatures brought them out. They were on the napa cabbage so pretty easy to spot and dispose of. As most of them are going to seed I'm hoping that this will act as a trap crop.


I will finish on brighter note. My first California poppy bloomed today. It is growing in gravel with no decent soil beneath. Just what they like apparently.


7 comments:

  1. Love the California poppy and the fact it doesn't seem to need much! Are these easy to find at a nursery and are their water needs fairly low? Thanks in advance!

    ReplyDelete
  2. That's distressing to know that something is out there, ready to eat in your garden behind your back. Good luck with the trap. I have one of those but it turns out I am a lousy trapper.

    Carol, May Dreams Gardens

    ReplyDelete
  3. Something's been munching my bluebonnet seedlings. I thought it might be slugs or snails and put out Sluggo, but they're still getting nibbled.

    ReplyDelete
  4. Hiya,

    Your garden looks like mid-summer!
    California Poppies? Now?? Amazing.

    Sorry to hear that all is not well in your paradise.Still an awful lot of lush growth judging from you pictures.
    Jo

    ReplyDelete
  5. Jenny, that poppy is gorgeous! I must add some to my garden. Sorry to hear about your pests. Want to borrow my cat? I've been pinching mexican beetles and cucumber beetles -- hard to believe they're already so active.

    ReplyDelete
  6. Lucky you--my California poppies don't even have buds yet. Also, your poppy is more orange than the ones I have. I like yours more. This past fall I scattered some new California poppy seeds that are supposed to be red, lilac, white, and pink. I didn't even know they came in various colors until I saw the seed packets. Hopefully I'll see a few!
    Aiyana

    ReplyDelete
  7. Iris- Plant the seed in the fall. You will have them in abundance thereafter. They look prettier if they get little water.
    Carol- No luck with the trap yet. Set it last night with tomato- no takers, They prefer leaves which is making me think it might be a rabbit but have searched everywhere. We do have rabbits outside which is surprising as we have coyotes, owls foxes snakes- all kinds of predators.
    Pam- I have never found the rats eating the bluebonnets-rabbit?
    Joco- Just the one but lots of buds on the way. Another sunny day today but we had a frost last night.
    Renee- I'll save some seeds for you. I always have to remove pods or I'd be inundated.
    Aiyana- I hope your seeds work out. I bought a large packet of red Ca poppy from Az but they were no different from the regular ones. One year I did buy a packet of pastel shades, started them inside and they did quite well. My best success is with one called white linen- Renee's Garden I think.

    ReplyDelete

I love your comments unless they are spam comments which will always be removed in comment moderation.