Question. I found several of these insects on an old rotting tree stump and am concerned about the health of my trees. Will they attack living trees?
No, these beetles feed on rotting wood and the fungi it contains and do not pose a threat to other trees. They are called by several common names: lacquer beetle, beetle, and horned pasal. These insects have a rare life history, live in groups, and the parents care for their larvae, perhaps feeding them previously chewed rotten wood, for a year, while the young slowly mature.
What I love most about them is their ability to squeal. Both adults and larvae can walk, that is, they rub one part of the body against the other, making a noise. The purpose of this is probably to communicate with each other. The chirping of crickets and the calls of grasshoppers are both foot sounds, but in the case of these beetles, the sound is made at a higher pitch, similar to the sound of a person kissing a pet.
Interestingly, the Iowa State University BugGuide website suggests that Bess beetles may derive from the "Bess" part of the name, baiser, which means "kiss" in French. (Or maybe it's because they can bite with their forward-facing jaws, although it's never bothered me, and I find these animals funny every time I see them. When you pet them, they sometimes scream, which is always it is wonderful):
These carnivorous insects are wonderful companions and rarely pose a threat to healthy plants. In addition to removing old stumps and logs for free (although this takes time), they remove them. and the fungi that work with them are also a way to make the old tree's nutrients available to the rest of the ecosystem.
Question. I was told to use a lawnmower to cut the grass, but I'm not sure what that means or how useful it is for regular grass cutting. Should I use one?
A. Although the term "mulch" in the name is misleading because it makes us think of the bark mulch found in flower beds, lawn mowers that cut the mulch actually turn this material into a light mulch and a temporary mulch that looks like mulch. advantages. Grasscycling is another name for recycling grass resources.
The lawnmower is specially designed so that the pieces of grass clippings remain in the air for a long time in the machine so that they are chopped before the grass falls. Think of it as a food processor that pulses a few times to chop vegetables. Because the falling pieces are small, they do not stick to the surface of the grass. Microbes and invertebrates eat grass clippings relatively quickly, returning important nutrients to the grass roots and beneficial organic matter to the soil.
Because grass and soil are nourished by leaving grass clippings in the lawn instead of removing them, the need for fertilizer to grow a good lawn is reduced, and the hassle and expense of collection or disposal is eliminated with clippings. You don't need a lawnmower to collect lawn clippings, but it will save you the tedious step of digging up the mulch so that it breaks up and sits on the surface of the soil.
Some gardeners confuse this layer of mulch with thatch, but they are not the same thing, and fescue, the most common type of grass grown in Maryland, is tall, very slow-growing, and usually not large enough to remove. (However, Zoysia and Kentucky Bluegrass do. If mulch doesn't directly contribute to grass thatch, a thick layer of grass that's already there can increase thatch.)
One last tip. keep your mower blades sharp (on any type of mower) to keep your machine running smoothly. Try to sharpen your blades every six months; More so if you mow frequently or have a very large lawn to maintain. Sharper cutting decks reduce turf damage and fewer weed balls emerge from areas susceptible to weed pathogen infestation. However, neither the sharpness of the blades nor the mulching capacity of these mowers will allow for successful mowing and mowing in wet weather (a common misconception). Therefore, wait for the grass to dry after heavy rain or dew.
The University of Maryland Home and Garden Information Center provides information about gardens and pests at extension.umd.edu/hgic . Click "Ask Extension" to submit questions and photos.
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