Take the time to learn that there is not a "cure all" for every pest at every stage of it's life cycle. Some won't work if it's going to rain. Some don't work well if it's too hot, etc. You shouldn't use Sevin unless you know it will work for the insect you are trying to get rid of and in most cases there are less harsh chemicals you can use than Sevin. Pest management is complex, if you wish to use chemical products, do so responsibly which goes further than reading the label. If you want to learn, a good place to start is here: Integrated Pest Management This lecture is presented in two parts. Each part is 90-minutes in length. Recorded in Sacramento County in California's Sacramento Valley, this lecture is by Mary Louise Flint, Ph.D., Director, IPM Education and Publications, UC Statewide IPM Project and Extension Entomologist & Cooperative Extension Specialist. Education: B.S. Plant Science, University of California, Davis Ph.D. Entomology, University of California, Berkeley Appointment: 100% Cooperative Extension Research Interests: Integrated pest management of landscape, agricultural and garden pests; biological control of arthropod pests; alternatives to pesticides; adoption of alternative practices by practitioners; innovative delivery of pest management information. Topics discussed in the Integrated Pest Management Lecture: * IPM references and resources * Preventing pest problems * Natural common enemies * Making less toxic pesticide choices * Controlling aphids, scales, caterpillars, coddling moths, tree borers, snails and slugs, and lawn insects. You can watch the programs now online: Just make sure you have Real Player installed or download it free. Integrated Pest Management Part1 90 minutes Integrated Pest Management Part 2 90 minutes You'll want to bookmark the following link to Professor Flint's Lab Research on: Controlling Pests in Gardens and Landscapes: Vegetables and Melons I promise you'll learn one or two things to put in your gardening bag of pest management arsenals. ;) Take the time to learn that there is not a "cure all" for every pest at every stage of it's life cycle. Some won't work if it's going to rain. Some don't work well if it's too hot, etc. Pest management is complex, if you wish to use chemical products, do so responsibly which goes further than reading the label. If you want to learn, a good place to start is here: Integrated Pest Management This lecture is presented in two parts. Each part is 90-minutes in length. Recorded in Sacramento County in California's Sacramento Valley, this lecture is by Mary Louise Flint, Ph.D., Director, IPM Education and Publications, UC Statewide IPM Project and Extension Entomologist & Cooperative Extension Specialist. Education: B.S. Plant Science, University of California, Davis Ph.D. Entomology, University of California, Berkeley Appointment: 100% Cooperative Extension Research Interests: Integrated pest management of landscape, agricultural and garden pests; biological control of arthropod pests; alternatives to pesticides; adoption of alternative practices by practitioners; innovative delivery of pest management information. Topics discussed in the Integrated Pest Management Lecture: * IPM references and resources * Preventing pest problems * Natural common enemies * Making less toxic pesticide choices * Controlling aphids, scales, caterpillars, coddling moths, tree borers, snails and slugs, and lawn insects. You can watch the programs now online: Just make sure you have Real Player installed or download it free. Integrated Pest Management Part1 90 minutes Integrated Pest Management Part 2 90 minutes You'll want to bookmark the following link to Professor Flint's Lab Research on: Controlling Pests in Gardens and Landscapes: Vegetables and Melons I promise you'll learn one or two things to put in your gardening bag of pest management arsenals. ;)

Ahajmano- The earwigs at my place are OUT OF CONTROL. They have eaten every pepper, zucchini, watermelon, cantaloupe and cucumber plant I sowed. They even got the tomato seedlings. I am so depressed over it. But I like you I have mulched my whole gardening area with wood chips 5-7" thick to suppress weeds, retain water and eventually improve my rotten clay soil (Fertile but a pain in my bones and muscles). And I am not removing a 1/4 acre of mulch. I am just going to have to be smarter than an earwig! ;) In my experience the areas of where I have forked the soil over a few times with the wood chips and compost (Over a 2 year period) seem to be supplying them with enough food that they leave my veges alone. Crazy but that is the only difference within the beds. They are still there...they come running when I water. I read someplace that if provided the proper environment they will leave your vegetation alone. Who knows but I sure do dislike them right now. I was blessed by three of them in my shower this morning. Needless to say they are swimming with the fishes!

I've been able to handle my rose slugs with hand picking them off and I haven't resorted to pesticides (yet) so I'm not sure how effective they would be on them. You may not be seeing them because of how much damage they have done. They ate what they could and have probably moved on. Watch the new growth. The first noticeable sign of a rose slug is a very small clear patch in the leaf. It's like the pictures you posted but small clear patches on just a couple leaves. With my bushes I spot the leaf with the small clear patch, flip the leaf over, and the rose slug is usually right underneath or only a leaf away. I also found some ways to control rose slugs. One point it makes is that if you apply the foliar sprays, you have to make sure to spray the undersides of the leaves. Control for the Rose Slugs - 1.) Hand smashing the rose slugs as you can find them on the undersides of the leaves (look early morning). 2.) Repeated foliar sprays as needed, using Insecticidal Soaps or Horticultural Oils, but making sure to spray the undersides of the leaves where the rose slugs are feeding, not the tops of the leaves. 3.) Apply a systemic insecticide such as Bayer's 3 in 1 Rose Care, where the insecticide is taken up inside the plant and the sawfly larvae are killed as they feed on the leaves. Note:) The foliar sprays are usually the most effective and most immediate control, but a combination of systemic and foliar sprays works quite nicely. Here is a link that might be useful: control for rose slugs

Marcia, Please help me find out what kind of snake I came across today. While I was at the local dog park (near Orlando) I came across a yellow with black stripes snake. It looked to be between 3.5-4 feet long and did not appear at first glance (that was all I gave it out of fear) to be shiny. I was about 3 feet from it and didn't know it until my dog almost stepped on it. She obviously didn't see it either. The snake seemed a pit peeved about the whole thing but it decided not to attack and to slowly slither towards ME to get away from my dog. Needless to say, I took off in a different direction real quick and hollered for my dog to follow. I am not like you or others on this site. I am not a fan of snakes and am extremely afraid of them. Although, I don't mind the black racers that seem to have taken up permanent residence in MY back yard and they love to procreate often (or so it seems). I have seen a lot less field rats since the racers moved in and that makes me very happy. Anyway, can you help me figure out what this snake was? I have spent hours and hours online tonight trying to find it and just can't seem to find anything that looks like it. I am guessing that it is not dangerous to me or my dogs??? I am scared to take my dogs back through those woods that they so dearly love. As soon as I told them, "No more woods until the snakes are gone again," they "told" me to find it if it was dangerous or not and if it isn't that they want to go back again. So that is mostly why I am asking you for your help. We all love the walks but I am afraid of the snakes. Please help me feel safer about going back. Thanks in advance for your help.