Howdy Alan. "Spiders eat live prey." Like me? LOL Alan, do you handle insects without wearing gloves? Oohhh. I had some doubts about baiting spiders..You're right, they're not like roaches..set food inside a trap, and like motels, they won't check out. Fears are inherited from our parents/guardians. My mother would scream when a spider, well, almost any insect got in the house. She wasn't afraid of lighting bugs, butterfly's, etc, neither am I..she detested moths..bird seed (we have plenty,) attracts moths. Thank goodness, moths don't worry me. Alan, how many different types of house spiders are there? Did you know IL had Black Widows? I had NO idea..In 1994, I worked in a retail plant store. One day, my manager (she knew my love of spiders,) walked in and said, Hey Toni, do you want to see a BW? I thought she was joking..Sure enough, on the side of the building, a BW resided..A co-worker said they lived in his yard..He lives in Chicago!!! I couldn't believe it..So, out of curiosity, I phoned the Chicago Public Library for verification, asked if they'd check, and sure enough, I was informed BW's were documented living in the midwest. And other cold climate states. I'll never forget this. My grandmother bought a bunch of bananas. As she pulled one off, stuck to the peel was a dead Banana Spider. This happened years ago. Why did you wife's doctor think the spider was a Recluse? Does he have a phobia? LOL. Alan, how on earth do you remember each spider/insect known to man, latin names? If this is too personal, you dont have to answer, but I was wondering if you've travelled to places like the Amazon searching for insects. I have to scroll up to see what your occupation is. I'd have to ask my friend, Cindy, how she or whomever concluded she was bitten by a Recluse. Both people who were bitten happened to be in a country-like atmosphere. She has a summer house about 70 miles southwest of Chicago. The second person who was bitten is a friend/co-worker of my husband. I hope your wife is okay, Alan..did you charge your wife's doctor a co-pay for analyzing his spider? LOL Spiders eat Praying Mantis? You're kidding? I'd imagine a large spider would be capable, but what about small to mid sized? I don't want to harm a Mantis. Alan, nope, EW's don't amount to much, especially since you mentioned they eat new foliage. No wonder my Croton has newly bitten leaves. The Croton is on a table..one of the spots I mentioned when you lift a pot numerous EW's take off. Do you know if they're nocturnal? Thanks for the info..You are a true-blue, knowledgeable insect-person. LOL. Sarah, if I hadn't scrolled up to search for something Alan wrote, I wouldn't have seen your post.. Well, next time/if, ants find a way in, I know what to do. Thanks so much. What happens to the ants when you set out the cotton? Does it kill them or keep them out? I dont know what essential oil is..What is it? You fear crickets? Really? I love when they sing at night, while lying in bed, but if one hopped on me, I'd probably fall on my, behind..LOL..Between spiders and crickets, I'd rather deal with crickets. Are crickets the only insect you fear? What about grasshoppers? Is it their appearance that troubles you, or the fact they hop/jump? If it's the hopping, what would you if you saw a Jumping Spider? Sorry, I don't know the Latin names. Oh Sarah, your cats are sooo pretty..Beautiful in fact. The Calaco, Ugs, (LOL, that name) colors are so pronounced. Luna's a nice name..Did you adopt during a full moon? (S) I'm happy you found and adopted Ug. What color are her eyes. Nerd's huge, green eyes are inviting. Are they lap cats? Purr loud? We had a Catalina Macaw (21 yrs.) His name was Zelda, (talk about names,) he was a surgically sexed male. We got Zelda when he was 6 months old, if that. After his 15th year with us, he changed, grew violent. Not a little violent, a lot. He turned against me. Every morning, while I was sleeping, he'd walk in the bedroom and bite. Everyday I'd wake dripping w/blood. One day while walking in the LR, he charged, bit the skin between my toes. To this day, my toes are split. Meaning when I stand, my toes are shaped like a 'V.' The conclusion, he 'flew' on my face, held onto my skin..he wouldn't let go. I was spinning around, and still he wouldn't loosen his grip. Their powerful beak ranges 4-5," maybe more.. That was it. I know a few women in charge of Illinois bird shows/fairs. They adopt unwanted/abused birds. Zelda wasn't abused at all, though when he woke me, I was afraid when half asleep, I'd strike out and hurt him. We took him to the vet for a physical before thinking about putting him up for adoption..the vet said he was going through sexual frustration. He was seeking a mate. Since he didn't want me touching anyone, including our son, he attacked me. We ended up putting him up for adoption..I was so darn depressed, but there wasn't any other choice. A single, lonely man adopted him; the two get along great. I keep tabs on Zelda but not allowed to visit. After 21 years, he might remember who we are, which might cause problems..I understand their rules. If anyone asks about adopting a bird larger than a love bird, (unless they live in a warm climate and/or have more than one bird) my advice is to look for a smaller parrot or move to a sub-tropical area. Birds need company, attention, and healthy foods..Bird seed isn't adequate. No siree-bob. They need fruit and veggies on a daily basis..they can't be locked in a cage 24/7. Around 5 years of age, birds go through sexual maturity. At that time, they need a lot of attention, bond, or else they'll eat your walls, furniture, and rip anything they feel will make appropriate nesting.. Budgies and Cockatiels are good size. They're smart, learn to whistle an entire song, and even talk. Males are vocal, females affectionate. Speaking of phobias, there are a good number of people who fear birds..Maybe they'd seen Alfred Hitchcock's, The Birds movie..LOl.. Sarah, do your cats eat/bother your plants? Do they have a favorite? Toni

In regards to Louisiana_botanist and anyone else interested in the effectiveness of Mosquito Barrier... I purchased two bottles of this to help combat the army of mosquitos that we had just in our backyard. The first application I added a little more of the product than needed but we had severe mosquitos. The product claims to also repel fleas and ticks which is a plus since we have two dogs. I applied the stuff with a sprayer following instructions and sprayed entire yard and some of the tree near our patio. Once you apply it, your yard will smell like garlic for an hour or two so be sure to spray it in a way so you don't step on the grass that was just sprayed (I sprayed it walking backwards) so I didn't track the smell in the house. The next night we went to see how well it did, surprisingly enough it worked well. Instead of getting bit 8 times while constantly moving around for 2-3 minutes, I didn't get bit at all for 5 minutes while even standing still but I did see at least one mosqutio while out. It lasts for a good while so long as there isn't a heavy rain or you water the lawn more than once a week. General application would typically last 2-3 weeks for me due to needing to water at least twice a week and/or rain. The "barrier" tends to be breached by a few mosquitos as each day passes until they increase in numbers where you notice them again and need to spray a second application. Since I used to live in New Orleans I know how bad mosquitos can be there but I would say you will definately see a difference after using this. The cause of my mosquito problem was due to a neighbor with a water fountain in the backyard that had lots of standing water. Now that they have let it just dry out, I have 1/10 the mosquitos I had before and haven't needed to spray anything in over a month.

Patrick, did you know that you can get allergy shots for a mosquito allergy. Mine is a true allergy. I may get 6 or 7 mosquito bites on one day, then in 36 hours, one of the bites begins to swell. It swells to the point that I cannot cover it with my hand, it develops a purple knot the size of a quarter, and it begins an unusual itch that feels dangerous. When I was diagnosed the allergist even insisted that I carry adrenalin for 2 weeks until the shots had time to take effect. That was many many years ago, and after the two weeks or so, my mosquito bites are just annoying, but not dangerous. I still take the shots. I worry about the diseases that they carry and that ticks carry. Aren't you in the medical profession? You might ask to be skin tested. Thanks for your recommendation. I have been using Cutter from Lowes. like you, I put on sun block (Coppertone) then the spray. It doesn't take long to feel very dirty. When I first saw the ad of the new spray on TV, I thought it would be unsafe to breathe. But if the stuff is on your skin, you still breathe it. Sammy

Jimmy, that sticky surface is likely the sugars secreted by sucking insects such as aphids, mites and other sucking types. In damp conditions, it can form a black mold in it, called "sooty mold" as it looks like soot. Are there tree limbs or the foliage of other plants overhanging the roses? I've usually seen what you describe on plants which grow under some other foliage canopy and it more often indicates there are mites or other insects on the undersides of the overhanging foliage than on the roses themselves. That might not be your case, but in many years of dealing with other peoples' gardens, it's what I've encountered time after time. If there is other foliage hanging over the roses, look on their undersides for sucking insects. Eliminate them, or the overhanging foliage, and you will usually eliminate the sticky droppings. Dissolving that sticky stuff requires water as it is primarily sugar and water, with a small percentage of other elements of the plant's sap. In very cool, damp conditions with no potential for extreme heat or extreme sun, I've used very weak solutions of Ivory Liquid in hose end sprayers with copious water to remove extreme deposits which have been there for weeks. The use of anything is going to require water, whether it's plain water or Insecticidal soap. I'd think unless you need the soap to kill insects, you'd be better off not using it, but just rinsing it off with water. If it's only a little bit on a few plants, you can use a hand held sprayer to apply the water, loosen it with your fingers then spray it off. For larger, heavier areas, spraying it off with a hose to wash and rinse it is best. I'd make sure you take care of any infestation on any plants hanging over your roses first. If there are tree leaves or branches from a hedge or other shrubs providing homes for insects on other plants so their "honey dew" falls on your roses, washing it off now will only allow it to be deposited again as long as conditions remain conducive for the insects to continue feeding and proliferating. If you see aphids on your roses and the sticky deposits are only where those aphids are, and if the temperatures are correct for using Insecticidal soap without heat damage, that would help eliminate the aphid situation for a while. Personally, I would still rinse off the sugar water before applying the Insecticidal soap because both together can make a very nasty deposit on the foliage. If your heat is coming, that combination can burn the foliage worse than just leaving the sticky on it. Watch for ants. They eat the honey dew and will "farm" the aphids for it. Kim