All the Dirt on Gardening

European wasps discouraged in Australia Pollinator gardens are all the fashion as we have become alarmed at the demise of pollinators world-wide. Gardeners are cautioned to not plant pollinator-attracting plants near doors, where children play and where pets rest.  Insect Identification's site has a page of photos to help clarify what's buzzing. National Geographic says there are 30,000 identified wasps, " Wasps make up an enormously diverse array of insects, with some 30,000 identified species." The coolest photos I found of wasps is at this link to  Nottinghamshire Social Wasps. Not to be missed! Karl Foord, Extension Educator at the University of  MN posted many photos in his article about wasps visiting his pollinator garden plants at this link .  Click over to read his delightful blog post and photos about various wasp visitors. Excerpt: " The garden has been continually patrolled by a great black wasp ( Sphex pensylvanicus ). This wasp is perc...

Sustainable is one of the words gardeners will see everywhere in the coming year. Sustainable means employing practices that allow us to continue gardening with minimal long-term cost to the natural world. Those practices include everything from planting appropriate trees to minimizing water use. One practice that gardeners may forget is that of planting food for beneficial insects so they will do some of our work for us as well as eliminating the need for expensive chemicals. Entire beds placed close to fruit and vegetable gardens can be dedicated to beneficial insect food and habitat. Many beneficial-attracting plants are attractive enough to be tucked into your existing containers or herb and flower beds. Either way, try to have something in bloom for these garden helpers all the time. Bad bugs eat our garden plants and good bugs eat or live off of the bad bugs. Beneficials include predators, parasitoids, soil builders plus the pollinators. Parasitoids draw their...