Critter Ridder
Sharing Your Yard...With Almost Everything
- When I moved to Texas from Pennsylvania in 1989, I was opened up to a whole new world of critters. Armadillos and coyotes crossing roadways. Scorpions and tarantulas showing up in my kitchen. Fuzzy, beautiful orange and black striped ants -- actually wingless wasps called Velvet Ants -- marching across my patio. And then there's these gigantic, curious bee-looking things...
For the most part I'm not going to cover plant insect pests. That's a whole other column, or two or three. There's plenty of time to sit back and chew the fat about aphids later this spring. Instead, let's concentrate on the unwelcome guests of the flying and crawling variety that aren't routinely discussed in organic columns.
Cicada killers If one of these comes around, you will know it. Topping out at 2+ inches, they are the 747 of the bee and wasp world. They talk tough with a lot of buzzing, swooping and flashing of their yellow and black stripes, but are generally harmless. Leave them alone, but be mindful if walking in the grass barefoot; they burrow in the ground. As their name suggests, they munch on a steady diet of cicadas.
Crickets, Grasshoppers, Moths Control by encouraging more birds to your yard with feeders. Add a water feature to welcome lizards and geckos.
Fire Ants - My nemesis. Fortunately, I've found that Spinosad works wonders on mounds. Beneficial nematodes applied to the lawn in early spring are also effective for a year or more.
Flatworms This hammer-headed, striped, mucus-covered worm is a nasty predator of the beloved earthworm. Use orange oil on flatworms...do not smash or chop up...the pieces will live on.
Horseflies Again, encourage birds and lizards.
Scorpions Natural DE, glue traps. Scorpions are actually quite beneficial...but you won't catch me cuddling up to one.
Animals With Attitude
- Some wild critters can be controlled, but most should be ignored. However, if that cute bunny or elegant deer is making a meal of your flowers, veggies and landscape plants, there are numerous harmless ways to send them somewhere else...like your neighbor's yard.
Birds I love my backyard mockingbird, I really do. But, like many of my beloved birds, he is fairly precocious and extremely curious. Silver tape, netting, and old CDs dangling on strings are effective in keeping birds
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