Re: Re: CULT: mulch
In a message dated 12/26/2002 1:13:22 PM Central Standard Time,
laurief@paulbunyan.net writes:
> If anyone has
> experience with army worms, can you tell me if there is a "safe" time to
> rake needles without also bringing home a bunch of worms, moths, eggs, or
> pupae?
>
Army worms are not a major problem here so I do not have a lot of expetese to
offer. I do know that ordinarily they appear in the fall and that their hatch
does not occure until cooler fall temperatures appear. The moth that lays the
eggs ordinarily chooses to lay the eggs near a convienent food source (mostly
grasses). The most common sources for pine straw collection do not meet the
moths criterion as a place to lay eggs. Lazy Bill's technique of collecting
already bagged pine straw from city dwellers may provide some degree of heat
sterilization of the product. Pests from its use have not been a problem here
on daylilies. Collection from under trees has provided, more than once, cute
little Texas blind snakes feeding on earth worms.
Bill Burleson 7a/b
Old South Iris Society
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