Jul 25, 2022·edited Jul 25, 2022Liked by Lynn Cady
Not that I'm an expert gardener or anything like that, but in the gardening I've done, it seems that insect pests have had little effect on size of harvest. One exception is Squash Bugs which can get so abundant I just assume they must affect the harvest. Still, I've rarely sprayed and when I did, it didn't seem to help much...this year we're pretty much keeping on top of them by search and manual destroy of adults and eggs on our 5 squash plants, nearly daily.
Plus, observing insects in the garden is part of the pleasure of gardening. I remember well when my Dad first showed me pupae of a parasitoid wasp on a tomato hornworm in our garden...another thing that pushed me toward a career in zoology and a lifelong fascination with insects.
Not that I'm an expert gardener or anything like that, but in the gardening I've done, it seems that insect pests have had little effect on size of harvest. One exception is Squash Bugs which can get so abundant I just assume they must affect the harvest. Still, I've rarely sprayed and when I did, it didn't seem to help much...this year we're pretty much keeping on top of them by search and manual destroy of adults and eggs on our 5 squash plants, nearly daily.
Plus, observing insects in the garden is part of the pleasure of gardening. I remember well when my Dad first showed me pupae of a parasitoid wasp on a tomato hornworm in our garden...another thing that pushed me toward a career in zoology and a lifelong fascination with insects.