June 9, 2020
Most of the English Broad Beans are doing well, but a couple of them are getting covered up top with a lot of black aphids.
Fun fact. Most aphids are born pregnant! That is how they become so prolific so quickly.
After I saw this problem starting last week, I ordered 1,000 Green Lacewing eggs, and wrote to my fellow Master Gardeners, letting them know I ordered the Green Lacewings, and asked about what I should do. They said to wash the aphids off as best I could with a strong spray of water, and go ahead and release the Green Lacewings.
Last year I had ordered Ladybugs, and didn’t get them to stay around much, even though I released them at night after I watered. I had heard they would come thirsty, and would try to fly to far off places if not released at night with wetness around. So much for the theory. I am hoping that the Green Lacewings will stick around. Although it seems that it is recommended to release a couple more batches bi-weekly, I’ll see how this batch goes. If they stick around enough to help, I will order more.
The instructions said to hang them up near the troublesome spot for up to 11 days.
The strawberries are starting to come up ripe, and I am pretty excited about that. We have eaten a couple, but hope to have a lot more this year as the plants are much healthier, because I put some rabbit manure on early in the season.
I have had to thin the carrot patch several times, and it has been a great addition to the lettuce from the garden for a nice salad. Also, I have found a few small slugs, and saved myself some future grief by getting rid of them early.
The other side of the story here is that we are cleaning up the house to get it ready for sale. I have been helping our granddaughter clean and pack her room this week, and it has been going pretty well. She has appreciated very much the help, and it has been good to spend some extra time with her.
That’s is for this week!
Goodbye, and God be with you, Grandma.
Grandma's Garden 