I am enjoying the bitterly cold weather by sitting inside on my couch and looking through my seed and plant catalogs planning for that first day of vegetable gardening. There is something to be said for staying inside and close to a fire. We have been eating the canned and frozen produce from our gardens this winter too. We enjoyed the last of the freezer pesto sauce made with my garden's fresh basil. It was so very good and I want to be sure to have more fresh herbs in the garden this year. There is joy in planning which seeds and seedlings will be tried in the garden. I am already dreaming of an early spring planting day for radishes, green onions, peas, and lettuce. Can't wait to try some of the new varieties of these plants.
I regret I have not taken a vacation day from work to turn my garden soil yet. Why would one turn soil on a cold winter day? Glad you asked! We have something in the soil that loves to overwinter in their grub state and emerge late June to early July ravenous for fresh summer produce, the Japanese beetle. Their better known name is June bug and they are as insidious as kudzu in the South. These bugs love to eat summer vegetables and herbs, particularly asparagus, basil, okra, peppers and greens. They can be very destructive to gardens. I wish that I had turned up the gardens before this latest cold snap hit to expose and freeze these free-loaders. Right now they are enjoying their life living a little below root level in our gardens, laying low and waiting for warmer weather like us.
During winter smart farmers will turn up the soil in an effort to organically control these nasties. There are other, natural ways to control them like nematodes, and Milky Spore products. I've had dogs that relished eating these insects once the grubs morphed into their adult beetle form and the dogs would run crazy eights in the yard catching one after another. My Dad said he would catch them as a kid and tie a thread to them and watch them fly in a circle. (My Dad told stories like that one and I could never quite believe it - seeing is believing - it is hard to tie a thread to these critters.)
Many home owners battle moles not realizing that the moles (and skunks) are digging in their lawns for Japanese beetle grubs. The home owner tries to kill the moles not realizing that they need to treat their lawns for grubs and get rid of the mole's food source. If you have a mole you can trap it; and many traps will also kill it. Generally moles are solitary creatures but can have an extensive network of tunnels. which only attract more moles when they find an empty home. Rather than battling moles, battle the grubs.
June Bug Life Cycle: University of Arkansas
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