02 May Insects—Friends or Foes?

In most cases, you won’t be happy if droves of ants show up for your picnic under the trees. They have a way of making pests of themselves. However, keep in mind that insects such as ants and mosquitoes are part of the ecosystem.  So treat them with respect and just simply “shoo” them away rather than exterminating them. How?

Ant problem?

Green Tip #1: Deter them away. Ants dislike cayenne pepper, citrus oil, lemon juice, cloves, cinnamon or coffee grounds, fresh garlic, or dry crushed mint leaves.  You can soak one of these into a cotton ball and place as a natural ant deterrent. 

Green Tip #2: Keep things tidy.  Keep counters free of crumbs and sticky spots, cover the sugar, and put the honey jar away.  In other words, don’t confuse them by leaving out what might look like an open invitation to a buffet.

Green Tip #3: Persistent ants?  If ants still are insisting in conquering the inside of your home territory then take action. Plugging holes and cracks with caulking or filling with Vaseline will physically block the ants from entering.

Eco-Friendly Ant Facts:

-In just one acre these tiny insects move tons of soil in a year, loosening and aerating it!

-The findings of Dr. David Inouye of the University of Maryland offer some rather interesting sidelights about the activities of these little creatures. It appears that ants scamper up and down the stems of plants because they relish dining on their floral nectar. Furthermore, because they are of a militaristic nature, they will aggressively chase away other insects who may dare to encroach on their staked–out territory with its sweet treasure. So the reality is ants are really good, natural protectors against many destructive insects that seek to devour more of the plant than merely its nectar.

Keep the mosquito away!

Green Tip #4: Make your own repellent spray.  An effective mosquito repellent includes eucalyptus oil and one part garlic juice with five parts water in a small spray bottle.  I know…the sound of this natural recipe doesn’t smell good. However, it will work and it is better than spraying harmful chemicals onto your body.

Green Tip #5: Small changes can reduce the amount of mosquito bites. Avoid going outside at dusk and at night, when mosquitoes are most active. Use mosquito netting, preferably saturated with repellent. Take 300 milligrams of vitamin B₁ daily. This makes the perspiration of some people obnoxious to mosquitoes.

Green Tip #6: Cover your body.  Wear loose clothing with long sleeves and pants when you can. Also, if necessary, wear a hat with netting to cover the entire head when doing your gardening. Experiments undertaken by Dr. W. A. Brown at the University of Western Ontario indicate that the kind of clothing you wear affects your “attractiveness” as far as mosquitoes are concerned. Allen Rankin writes: “In his experiments Dr. Brown found that one tenth as many mosquitoes landed on white clothing as on dark. In general, the lighter the color, the fewer mosquitoes attracted. Texture most avoided—luminescent satin.”—Marvels & Mysteries of Our Animal World.

Green Tip #7: Grow a plant. An easy-to-grow plant, which can tolerate a wide range of temperatures, is Australia’s fork leaf sundew. “It is an ideal plant to have if mosquitoes prevent you from sitting outside in the evening,” says Chris Heath, carnivorous plant specialist at the Walworth Garden Farm Environmental Education Centre in London. “Plant it in a hanging basket where its shiny droplets of sticky fluid will attract mosquitoes.” Any that brush against a leaf are held fast by its sticky hairs, which curve inward and press the insect against the surface of the leaf.

Eco-Friendly Mosquito Facts:

-Some researchers suggest that the male mosquito, whose fare is the juice of plants, plays a part in pollinating wild flowers of some types. Also, mosquitoes are said to be a significant food source for certain animals, birds, other insects and even fish.

-“A natural forest is an extremely complex environment,” said Jack Shepherd, author of The Forest Killers, “with hundreds of species of plants, each occupying its own niche and each providing niches for many kinds of animals.” Left to itself, a forest can, in nearly flawless cycles, care for its own needs. Interestingly, certain species of mosquitoes stay in the tops of the trees. Is that important? Well, it is thought that diseases carried by insects, such as yellow fever and malaria, did not become a problem until man brought havoc to the world’s forests. How delicate is the balance of a forest’s ecosystem!

Even with their drawbacks, insects are an integral part of the natural world on which we depend. As Christopher O’Toole points out, while insects can survive without us, “we cannot survive without them.”