The fluff that Fairy Flies are made of

A couple of years ago I was weeding in one of the gardens that happens to be located along the drainage ditch we have on our property.  The ditch is lined with every size of limestone rock you could imagine and follows the slope of the wooded hillside.  There was a cool, gentle breeze wafting down from the top of the hill, giving me some relief from the humidity.  I glanced up appreciatively and noticed what I thought was some "fluff" from a tree or plant floating along with the breeze.  It landed on one of the Witch Hazel leaves next to me.  Then I noticed a few more.  Then one moved...that's right...it crawled! What on earth?! 



This fluffy creature is called a Woolly Aphid.  They are sometimes referred to as a "Fairy Fly", among other nicknames.  Due to their whimsical appearance, some parents tell children that they carry wishes, live in tulips and much like fairies, are born every time you make a wish on a dandelion.

On the more practical side of things, Woolly Aphids are not generally much cause for alarm, although they can cause rather unsightly damage to plants. They feed by inserting their needle-like mouth parts into plants to withdraw the sap.  They feed on the leaves, buds, bark and even the roots. As they feed, they produce a sticky substance known as honeydew, which can cause "sooty mold" on the plants.

I haven't laid eyes on them since that day.  I've never noticed any type of damage I could attribute to their feeding habits and I abstain from using any type of insecticide or pesticide.  I find them to be beautiful creatures and I love the fairy tale version of their existence.

Resource:  http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Eriosomatinae

Booney Hat Days & Gardener ADD

Huh?  A boonie hat is a hat issued to the military when they are deployed to the desert, i.e. Iraq.  My hubby gave one of his to me after he retired and since I almost lost him during his second deployment, I am very sentimental about said hat.  It works great for shielding my face from the sun and now that he has stopped nagging me about wearing it properly (the rank goes in the front and the name goes in the back...yes, dear)  I gladly wear it when I garden.  I have begun to fondly refer to the days I get to spend out in the gardens as "booney hat days".  And today was one of those days...FI-NALLY!    


                     ⊰✿ It's Thyme for my dirt manicure ⊰✿            

When I can get outside at the beginning of the season, I refer to my excitement and the pinging back and forth I do from one task to another, maybe finishing them maybe not, as "gardener ADD".  There's just so much to do and I don't know where to start.  The term fits a little more appropriately then I'd like, but there it is...Indoors there are seed packets everywhere and seedlings under plant lights in the basement and garden plans and nursery catalogs (aka gardener porn) EV-ERY-where.

ANYway, today was slightly windy but the sun came out and it was more than tolerable. I cleaned up the asparagus/rhubarb bed and the tiered ever-bearing strawberry bed that I had put in last fall.  The rhubarb is doing well and the asparagus is starting to push through the soil. This is the first year I will be able to harvest the asparagus.  I am currently researching some companion plants for that particular bed.  I happened across a Leopard Frog among the leaves and was serenaded, as I toiled, by a House Wren. I purposely place a wren house near the potager for this very reason.

               












Yup, perfect day.  There are bound to be more.  I hope you have been able to get out there and get your hands dirty too, fellow gardeners!