Hi all, I 've got brown recluse spiders loitering in my shed, they show up from
time to time in the area and one once bit a friend of mine (he's still got a
nasty mark on his leg after a year). I'm not looking forward to that ever
happening again.

My yard also has swarms of what look like gnats but bite. Whatever they are,
more than one person has complained of bites when they walk past one area that
has ivy and an Azalea under a pine tree.

I'm not a pesticide fan, other than the brown recluses I don't go out of my way
to kill anything in the yard, but I've got kids to watch out for and I'm
starting to think about trying the Bayer Advanced hose-on spray.

I have a few concerns about it however. We've got a cat and a dog and they both
like to graze, and I'm not sure if the grass, once treated, would make them
sick. I know the label says it is safe once dried, but I'm a skeptic.

Also if anyone knows of a better (safer, natural) way to keep the swarms of
biting things and the brown recluses away, I'd be glad to hear them.


I've also got a question about landscaping plastic used under gravel next to the
shed. During the Winter we had about an inch of ice covering the gravel and as
it thawed the shed had some water seep in, that never happened before the
plastic went down and I have the feeling I blocked some much needed drainage by
putting the plastic under the gravel. Am I right? I'm not looking forward to
lifting the plastic but I will do what I'm told.

Thanks and sorry for the ramble.