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In article .net, "LAH"
wrote: I hate the *%#$@ things! I know I'll be accused of being a troll but you really have to be here to understand my hatred. My open front porch is on the south side of the house. At this time of year it is virtually unusable thanks to those red and black spotted menaces! Opening the front door is like to walking into a swarm! Actually the front door simply can't be used at this time of year. I wish the jerk who imported these things had to live with them like I do. Kill a ladybug, save an aphid! They usually prefer western sun exposures for hibernation purposes. It is possible to discourage them from using your porch without harming them much: Rig up a vaccuum cleaner (one with a hose, not beaters) with a fresh bag in it, or a nylon stocking or loose cheesecloth in front of the bag or a nylon stocking stuffed down the front of the hose. Vaccuum the ladybirds into the sack or stocking, to be emptied on the property edge or nearby woods, underneath or in the folds of a black tarp that can be permanently located (perhaps near a compost heap or along the west edge of a tool shed or garage), or deposit the sleepy ladies in the hollow of a rotting tree. They want a relatively dry slightly warmed place to hibernate, & rotting wood or west-sunned dark surfaces stay warmer than the atmospheric temperature, so can be better attractants than porches or the insides of walls. When they emerge next spring from out of a black tarp or tree hollow, they will take note of where they are at, & if struck them as a good place to have wintered, they may return to the same spot the next winter. Ladybirds have "scouts" which find ideal hibernation spots & somehow the news spreads among them & they remember the spot for generations; they arrive in autumn from a considerable distance, then emerge in spring to scatter far from your gardens, so the person with the most ladybirds hibernating often end up with the fewest when they're needed in spring. When they fixate on a specific spot they'll return to it year after year in increasing numbers, but if the mass-hibernation spot is frequently disturbed, such as by vaccuuming them up & moving them, their "scouts" look for safer refuge, & whether or not they continue to return to the tarp-spot provided for them, they eventually stop using a porch because they'll have learned it gets disrupted. -paghat the ratgirl -- "Of what are you afraid, my child?" inquired the kindly teacher. "Oh, sir! The flowers, they are wild," replied the timid creature. -from Peter Newell's "Wild Flowers" Visit the Garden of Paghat the Ratgirl: http://www.paghat.com |
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