The sphinx moth does indeed come from the tomato hornworm. The worms cannot live if removed from the tomato/pepper plant. I would happily sacrifice a tomato plant to the little guys because its so enjoyable to watch the moth on my phlox. There are so many braconid wasps in my garden that I haven't seen a hornworm or sphinx moth in years. U KY photo

Thanks everyone for the response! Yes, Berndoodle, that south facing deck is prime for mites-nice and dry and warm ;-) Temps have been in the low 80s, a few degrees warmer on the balcony. ItÂs supposed to cool a little next week. Unfortunately, there arenÂt any outdoor faucets anywhere I could see. Veilchin, I wish I could use the shower :-) It-and my 3 other HTs-are in 16-18in pots(about 30 qt). They were all 2 gal plants when I got them 5 weeks ago, and have all grown like mad, and bloomed. Tho I can shift them, I donÂt think I can carry them far, and they probably wonÂt fit. Hoovb, my taps are all the decorative type, or have a filter on them -and I have a downstairs neighbor :-( I do use the sink sprayer for my Parades, tho. Chuck, Berndoodle, I spot tested the Greenlight on a branch yesterday-leaves seem ok so far, no burn. Rose Nutty, may be worth it- Lowes and Star have some 1 gal sprayers for about $10-12. Cheap enough, and if it doesnÂt work, itÂll sure make it easier to put the Neem on. Those hand-trigger spray bottles donÂt spray up very well ;-) Would a very mild soap mixture beforehand break down the webÂs surface tension so the oil would work better? Had read in another post that Bayer 2 in 1 can be effective. If the rose is not blooming, maybe less harmful to the honeybees that are working my salvia, lavender and cherry tomato? Again, thanks all!

Remember all, the first birds of the season are few and far between. They tend to be males who are beelining it north to stake out the best breeding grounds. Hummingbirds migrate individually, not all at once like some birds do. It's mom nature's way of not putting all of her eggs in one basket. The guys heading north now may stake out the best breeding grounds and father more babies OR they could get frozen out in a late spring storm. In that case the ones that are playing it safe and heading north later win out and get the good breeding grounds and more babies. Other years they may find all of their dance partners taken by the time they get where they're going. Where I'm at I sometimes will spot one mid-April, often I hear othgers nearby have seen them in mid-april, but I won't see one until May. Or the ones we see early are only there for a day or two before heading on, and we don't get our regular "summer long" visitors until May or even June. It's kind of odd, but I've noticed a similar deal here in Iowa - the hummers seem to be sighted along the Mississippi river MUCH further north before we ever see one here. Maybe there's routes they take first and the others fill out the "in between" later. Has any one else noticed this? Imagine a marathon running by your house - you're on a part of the route without crowds. The very first runner may be hours ahead of the main bunch and easy to miss unless you are looking out the window at exactly the right moment. The main bunch fill the road for hours and are impossible not to notice. Hummer migration is kind of like that - it's easy to miss the first few birds. I always put out my feeder early, so I know if a hungry bird stops by he'll have food. If I see an early hummer that's a bonus - I'm happy knowing I'm doing what I can to help them whether or not they come to the feeder just when I happen to look at it. I completely understand your impatience to see your birds, we all share that right now. I just don't want you to stress or be depressed because they're still on your way to you. If you've had dozens you must have good habitat and food for them - they won't forget that. I do hope you'll let us know when they do show up - jot down the date on the calender so you can compare from year to year.

What did you think, Wantonamara? I wish I had more access to S. apiana petals. If I had only known this when I lived in Ojai. The other edible flower I like to eat that everybody seems to ignore is the scotch broom that's so invasive here - such a nice, nutty taste to them.