Crape Myrtle wishes it could be just a little bit taller

Tomato Hornworm

I called my Mom this weekend, and she described these finger-thick "hornworms" which are chewing the heck out of her tomato plants.  Light green, single spike on the hind end, terribly cute, and ravenous appetite.  Oh dear, my half-inch long ones on the Mr. Stripey tomato are suddenly not so cute.  They're only the thickness of a pencil lead, and since they're so tiny and weren't doing very much damage I was just going to leave them be.  I rushed to the garden to check... and yes, they've doubled size in a day, and both of them had taken out an entire leaf already.

 Nom nom nom... 

When I first noticed one, it was less than half that size, and the spike was towering straight up, almost half the length of its body.  And yep, you may have guessed it from the photo... I have removed both of the hornworms from the tomato plants, and they are now living happily in a little storage tub with plenty of tomato greens.  I'm such a sucker for creepy crawly things, and can't stomach squishing them (haha, that's what husbands are for, right?  And he's not home yet).  So now they're pets for the time being.  At least the Mr. Stripey tomato has enough leaves to spare so far... jeez, these things are voracious.  Hopefully I can support one long enough to see it turn into a Sphinx moth (otherwise known as Hawk or Hummingbird Moth)... should only take 3-4 weeks.  I will have to keep an eye on my plants, though... where there's 2, there's probably more!

Here's a nifty website that describes them:  http://www.vegedge.umn.edu/vegpest/hornworm.htm

My Dad sent me a few photos he took of one of their hornworms... it is beautiful!

 How doth the little crocodile improve his shining tail...

... and pour the waters of the Nile, on every golden scale.

It also really, really reminds me of the caterpillar in Alice In Wonderland.  Something about the blues and greens in the photo is magical!  And despite what he's done to the yellow pear tomato, those eye spots are amazing.  Alas, due to his transgressions he has moved on to the, uh, great tomato field in the sky.  Here's hoping for a speedy recovery of my parents' tomatoes!


What's the most destructive pest you've had in your garden?

Nasturtium Invasion

The nasturtiums had a large growth spurt after I fed them with fish emulsion.  I have them in last year's strawberry pot, and I was hoping it'd become a bush of peppery salad additions.  Instead, only the climbing type survived (Spitfire), and long vines began invading the path.  We left on a 3-day vacation, and returned to see that a vine had grown across the entire bottom of the doorway!  I kept pushing them aside, and wrapping them around the pot.  Then as a joke I hung a few strands over the porch light... by morning the nasturtiums were jubilant in their newly found access to sunlight, and within a few days there was a flush of flowers. 

So I hung more, and more, and eventually some grew long enough to reach a hook above meant for christmas lights.  I had thought the sudden change in position would stress the plant, but it only keeps getting happier.

Streeeeetch!

You can see the small terracotta strawberry pot in the bottom right-hand corner in the above picture.  I hardly ever water it... the only explanation is that the roots must've gone down into the soil where the drip system is active, so I am loathe to move the pot.

Where all the birdseed goes

Bonus lost post from April: Daffodils Heavy With Rain

The storm appears to have weighed down the daffodils

Hummingbird Investigation

I had no idea that hummingbirds were so territorial!  This weekend I was cleaning up my onion and garlic harvest whilst sitting outside, and had the opportunity to get a glimpse of hummingbird society.

There is one hummingbird who “owns” the backyard. At least, he does now that I am keeping the feeder full and have a new feeder with perches.  A week after I put up the new one, I kept going outside to see what all the squeaking was about.

Mmmm, tasty.

The old hummingbird feeder was a gift I was very grateful for, but its plastic broke down in the sunlight and it was missing all its petals and perches. The new feeder (it's just from Target) is metal and glass, and has the added benefit of being easily cleaned because the whole bottom section comes apart.

 He has HUGE EYES, wow.

Anyway, this hummingbird will sit in a favorite place where he can keep an eye on the feeder and the rest of the backyard, wobbling and licking and constantly scanning for intruders. That favorite place is on the top of a tomato cage near the back door, so I have a pretty good view. I was surprised to find that he spends more time chasing off competitors than he does eating! Literally every minute, he is chasing someone else off into the neighbor's yards, and then he swoops back, takes a "victory sip" of nectar, and resumes his position. Any time spent not chasing is spent sitting and looking very drunk and very cute, or energetically squeaking.

Sunday I had the opportunity (and patience) to hide underneath his spot to sneak a video. It was actually difficult to take any at all, because I had to reach my arm very close and he doesn't like a lot of movement from the humans.

Our hummingbird is the fattest one of all. :)

Anybody know why hummingbirds look like they're experiencing vertigo when they sit down? Until someone enlightens me, I am going to assume it's just because they're so high-energy they can't be still.

Here is the recipe I use for the feeder: ½C sugar, 2 cups water.

I refrigerate the leftovers in a mason jar for a week or two... the new feeder isn't drippy, so the nectar lasts a lot longer. I rinse the feeder with white vinegar between uses to get rid of any mold spores... the feeder isn't dishwasher-safe which would be nice, but I hear you're not supposed to use any soap in there anyway.

Do you have a hummingbird feeder in your backyard?

Peeking Over

Haha!  This weekend I went outside and saw this sunflower peeking over from my neighbor's yard.  It is full size but is along the edge of their house across an otherwise empty yard twice as big as mine, which is why the perspective makes it look so tiny in the photo.

Ever get the feeling you're being watched?

Hmmm... now I want to grow sunflowers too!  They're so cheery.  But I have a feeling that Scrub Jay would peck the heck out of it before I could harvest anything (which is what is happening to a friend's sunflower this week)... he already shakes all the smaller seed out of his bird feeder to get to the sunflower seeds, and is pecking apples off the tree.