We have a new home that has a problem with flies and Japanese beetles. Should they be able to get around new windows and a doors to get inside? They are definiely a pain- we vacuumed them up daily when it was warm. And if this is the way it is, any ideas to prevent this?
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what, no ladybugs?
when in doubt add garlic
>>>what, no ladybugs?
Hilarious, sort of. You reminded me of our infestation last year. I must have vacuumed 10,000 ladybugs last Winter. Are there preventive measures in the Fall?
Thx,
Scott.Always remember those first immortal words that Adam said to Eve, “You’d better stand back, I don’t know how big this thing’s going to get.”
gardeners pay a lot of money for lady bugs...
Life is not a journey to the grave with the intention of arriving safely in a pretty and well preserved body, but rather to skid in broadside, thoroughly used up, totally worn out, and loudly proclaiming<!----><!----><!---->
WOW!!! What a Ride!<!----><!---->
Forget the primal scream, just ROAR!!!
Alright, alright, you guys are making me feel all warm and fuzzy about the little buggers, and a bit guilty for dispatching them into the vicious maelstrom of my central vac. Yes, I'm a gardener, and an orchard grower, and yes, they are perfectly welcome to be "out there". But literally thousands of them inside my house, congealing in huge clumps in every corner, is enough to test my limits.
…Maybe I can rig the vac to jettison them into the garden… I’ll work on that.
Scott.Always remember those first immortal words that Adam said to Eve, “You’d better stand back, I don’t know how big this thing’s going to get.”
Sure .. you get 'em started and when all they do is try to stay warm and fuzzy themselves... you breakout the bug buster..
SarahC from next door offered this..
I haven't tried it, but I have heard that if you have a lady bug invasion, you can tape a bay leaf to the window or wall wherever they are. Apparently they don't like the smell of bay at all and will move on. (Bay= the cooking kind, sold in the spice section of the grocery store). Good luck!
so try it..
and roxanna said this..
as to ladybugs, our native ones are excellent garden helpers, but from the numbers you're citing, i'd hazard a guess that you have the asian variety. once cool autumn temps arrive, they tend to congregate indoors in vast numbers. if they do, DON'T smash them -- they exude a nasty smell and a yellow liquid that can stain surfaces. i suggest vacuuming them up and disposing the bag immediately, tightly closed in plastic....
be Scott using a larger font..
Life is not a journey to the grave with the intention of arriving safely in a pretty and well preserved body, but rather to skid in broadside, thoroughly used up, totally worn out, and loudly proclaiming<!----><!----><!---->
WOW!!! What a Ride!<!----><!---->
Forget the primal scream, just ROAR!!!
Four ladybugs were sent into space in 1999 on NASA's space shuttle led by Eileen Collins. Ladybugs and their main food, aphids, were sent to a zero-gravity environment to study how to aphids could get away from the ladybugs without being able to jump using gravity.
According to the STS-93 Pilot Jeffrey S. Ashby, "One of the experiments that I do understand well, and is also very interesting, is an experiment that involves aphids and ladybugs. We are taking a small container with some leaves and aphids, and the ladybugs that are their prime predator. I'm told that the ladybugs on Earth will climb up a stalk to capture the aphids, and the aphids will use gravity to assist them to fall off of the leaf to escape from the ladybug. The question is, how will these defense mechanisms work in the absence of gravity, and what will happen to the relationship between predator and prey? One of the things that extra time has allowed us to do is to come up with names for the four ladybugs that we have. I think they have been very appropriately named after The Beatles: John, Paul, Ringo, and George. We're taking these ladybugs up and we're going to release them and see what they do."
Results of the Experiment: Upon completion of the mission, it was determined that the ladybugs survived and did eat the aphids while in a microgravity environment. Ladubugs do very well in space!
be and that's a factwhen in doubt add garlic
It's very reassuring to learn that:
As Humankind continues to extract minerals below the surface of the earth and use those materials to build/manufacture really heavy structures and machinery for use on the surface of the earth, gravity is being depleted.
I've often layed awake at night worrying about what I would do if our ever weakening gravity enabled aphids to run amok in my garden, unchecked by predation by my friends, the ladybugs.
So for now, at least, my beans are safe!
Yes, for now and perhaps forever,
seeing one must take into consideration the fact that as gravity is gradually depleted, the effect on the mass of the ladybug will be lessened and the flight of the ladybug will be much easier thus affecting their mobility.
Then, taking that into account much less energy will be needed by the ladybug, they will hold great reserves of power.
And then the fact of: During hibernation, ladybugs feed on their stored fat...
will permit the added fat cells to enter the ladybug's muscle tone and create a new more powerful breed.
Hey, I'd say there is no need for concern.
be a gallon jar will hold from 72,000 to 80,000 ladybugs.
when in doubt add garlic
Edited 10/18/2006 7:53 pm ET by rez
until the effects of lesser gravity allow them to grow to the size of a T-rex..
welll....
a cat anyways..
Life is not a journey to the grave with the intention of arriving safely in a pretty and well preserved body, but rather to skid in broadside, thoroughly used up, totally worn out, and loudly proclaiming<!----><!----><!---->
WOW!!! What a Ride!<!----><!---->
Forget the primal scream, just ROAR!!!
I'm pleased to note that my "depleted gravity" theory is catching on....
I'm really weary of the "Global Warming" thingy.
We (humans) need to keep our attention span innerved.
(and our conspiracy theories exciting and challenging).
Here in the East at least, those things aren't real lady bugs. Forget the exact name and am too lazy to look it up. One of those "imported" varieties that got out of hand. Look similar but they don't have the positive qualities of real lady bugs.Just came in off the porch...warmer today and the hatch is on. When I demolished this place and yanked the siding, molding and other exterior stuff off there were spots where there were thousands of them massed together, kind of like a giant bee nest. Weird.Todd
The Asian Lady Beetle can live up to 2-3 years if the conditions are right.when in doubt add garlic
How new is your house? We had stinkbugs here at first. But they are basically gone.
Maybe your bugs were hiding behind the trim or wherever, and came out when the heat went on?
Edit - we used the vacuum cleaner to suck them up - a lot of them.
Edited 10/17/2006 7:09 pm ET by Brian
they are in the walls..
they came with the place..
house warming gift from rez..
fumicate often till you break the cycle...
Life is not a journey to the grave with the intention of arriving safely in a pretty and well preserved body, but rather to skid in broadside, thoroughly used up, totally worn out, and loudly proclaiming
WOW!!! What a Ride!
Forget the primal scream, just ROAR!!!
We had to quit the job early yesterday because the ;adybugs got so thick u couldnt do anything! They were in ur ears; down ur neck on ur glasses. And this is a house with just the rafters up so far; they just love the Lowes white house wrap.Im sure theyre all massing in any crook and crany waiting to come out some winter day when the stove is crankin. Hate them stinkin bugs..even stink bugs smell better.
How does fornicating help get rid of bugs?
oh, FUMIGATE... never mind.
That's gonna depend on the type of bugs, I'd venture.Andy
"Never try to teach a pig to sing. It wastes your time and annoys the pig." Robert A. Heinlein
"Get off your dead #### and on your dying feet." Mom
if they're cluster flies they fornicated and left their larve outside in the dirt..
the larve are absolutely hell on all kinds of other bugs out there..
there's yur answer...
Life is not a journey to the grave with the intention of arriving safely in a pretty and well preserved body, but rather to skid in broadside, thoroughly used up, totally worn out, and loudly proclaiming<!----><!----><!---->
WOW!!! What a Ride!<!----><!---->
Forget the primal scream, just ROAR!!!
Am I buggin' you?
I don't mean to bug ya...
Okay Edge, play the blues..." ...when in doubt add garlic
The flies are probably cluster flies....harmless, but an annoyance this time of the year...