Trusting my ecosystem.... :-/

12 years ago

This year I figured I have had it! I am growing some HOT peppers. No more capsaicin free "peppers" from the local Utah markets. Living amongst a community of peoples that think Tabasco sauce is the devil and way to hot is insane!

With passion for heat in full motion I germinated many Chinense back in Feb and purchased a bunch of Annum last month. Late in April after what seemed like an eternity the temperatures finally warmed enough that I felt comfortable planting my peppers in the ground.

In the beginning.
{{gwi:288564}}

In my mind, the plan was simple and perfect, beat the heat haters and spice up my cuisine......

As it turns out, and as many of you surely know, mixing a passion for peppers with growing peppers results in a passion for growing. In my case the growing portion has slowly been turning me into an individual that has a huge appreciation for diverse balnced ecosystems.

The other day an earthworm got caught in a bad place during the day and I watched as it tried to escape the claws of a centipede. At night I have seen several species of spiders laying in wait on or near my peppers. A cardinal has taken up residence in a nearby tree and today I caught my first ladybug and promptly relocated it to the garden.

I witness amazing things in the gardens and forest surrounding my house. Birds, animals, bugs and plants all living together. There is give, take, and survival of the fittest.

Even as anger emerges when seeing a grasshopper munch on a beloved pepper, I feel it is important for us all to remember the consequences of our actions.

By planning our gardens well, being patient and understanding it is possible to avoid synthetic chemicals that don't just kill your problem, they can kill its ecosystem, which may in fact turn out to be a system we truly need.

Besides! Who wants to eat insecticides?

And yes I hate grasshoppers! They eat my basil seedlings faster than they can grow!..

I'll post some more pictures of the gardens if anyone would like to see how they are coming along.

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Comments (10)

stoneys_fatali
12 years ago
Very cool!

Yeah, when I'm out with my garden, I see many lizards, doves, mockingbirds, and hawks flying above...we also have deer and black bears in our neighborhood too but they can't get over my wall to the plants :-)
Occasionally, I see earwigs on my container plants crawling amongst the branches. I know they are just doing what is normal for them..I generally don't hurt them..I just flick them off.
greenman28 NorCal 7b/8a
12 years ago
Nice Thread! I welcome some visitors, and I spurn the rest.
Here's one that I happen to like ;-)

Josh
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kuvaszlvr
12 years ago
Ah, what a cutie. Yep, I spurn a few, aphids for sure, but there is one pest I will always pull out the sevin dust for no matter what, dang stupid squash bugs.
Pam
stoneys_fatali
12 years ago
He's cool Josh!

Pam, what's a squash bug?

Stoney
woohooman San Diego CA zone 10a
12 years ago
Couldn't agree more, djoy!

How about chiggers, Pam? :P

Stoney: we don't get them here. No worries.

Btw, nice pics djoy and Josh. Was tempted to grab the phone to get a pic of a baby mantid today. Not sure about those guys yet since they'll even eat the good guys. My mater plants were loaded with them last year but they didn't do a good enough job on the Tomato Suck Bugs. Plants tuckered out way too early because of them. :(

Kevin
djoyofficial
Original Author
12 years ago
I did see a baby mantis the other day and it blew me away how tiny it was. It would be cool to catch one in a picture for sure.

Everything is rooted and vegetating in this part of the garden. With highs in the mid 80's and lows in the upper fifties, I'm just hoping they grow faster than the grass hoppers and that many birds have bellies full of leaf eating bugs. Warmer nights are in the forecast.... fingers crossed.

Should the birds become pepper eaters in a few months.... I'll let the cat out. :-)

dj
greenman28 NorCal 7b/8a
12 years ago
Well, this little guy isn't on a pepper...but on a Ground Cherry....
Very tiny creatures, and fun to watch.

Josh
kuvaszlvr
12 years ago
Stoney - squash bug? YUCK!!! they look like stink bugs, do a search, I can't think right now of a good analogy right now. But they pierce the stems of the plants (squash, melons, etc) and inject a poison. They seem to multiply like aphids and can kill a plant in no time at all if left unchecked. I hate them.

Kevin... DOUBLE :-P~~~~~~~~~~~~ You should see my legs right now, dang chiggers have had a field day with me. I hate them too.

Another cutie Josh. I saw one like that a couple of weeks ago, I put my finger down and he jumped on my finger and ran up my arm, looked at me, and when I tried to touch him he jumped off.
Pam
djoyofficial
Original Author
12 years ago
I forgot to thank everyone for the kind words.. :-( Thank you!!

I caught some Damsels watching over the peppers and snagged a crisp shadow of one as it was methodically perusing each plant top to bottom.

Aside from usually being smaller, you can tell a Damselfly from a Dragonfly by the way their wings lay when at rest (for any that may be curious). These dames are pretty graceful fliers, cool to watch!

Thanks again. I love the pictures you have been sharing Josh!
dj

This post was edited by djoy on Wed, Jun 11, 14 at 16:35
stoneys_fatali
12 years ago
I get baby praying mantis on my Tabasco. They are so cool! Adults hang out in my front yard more for some reason. They like my front porch. I can get pretty close to them but they turn their head constantly watching me. I think they know I'm a friend that won't hurt them :-)

Stoney