You're Bugging Me

I mentioned the other day how much I enjoy living around all the wildlife here in Illinois. Idaho was so high and dry, there just wasn't much around and so it's thrill to see deer, foxes, rabbits, etc. However, one thing about the high desert of Idaho is that is was more or less bug free. We had ants, mosquitoes, and the occasional hobo spider but, other than that, insects just weren't a problem.

Here in the land of humidity and heat, things are different. In the last two weeks, I've had to pay someone with serious chemicals to come and kill the earwigs in the house and the Japanese beetles in the trees. The earwigs were everywhere - especially downstairs and it was horrible. It reminded me of my time in Mississippi and Louisiana when I would turn on the lights and roaches would scatter. Earwigs aren't as bad as roaches, of course, but they're still pretty hideous. I was happy when, after the spraying, they started to turn up dead.


The Japanese beetles started to eat the heck out of the birch tree in the front and a bush in the back. The problem, I've figured out, is that our neighbors' trees are all completely swamped in the buggers. I can have my landscape sprayed but if there are armies of the beetles next door, there isn't a lot I can do. Sigh.



The leaves on my tree and bush look like this:



According to the amazing knowledge machine that is the Internet, there are some pretty easy home remedies to help curb the little beasts so we'll see if I can save our foliage. The season for beetles is June and July so hopefully they'll abate in a couple of weeks one way or the other.