Harvestman Stopping for a Drink

Harvestmen, commonly called Daddy Longlegs, are arachnids, like spiders, but they differ from spiders in several key areas: they have no venom glands; the have only one body segment, rather than two; and they have two eyes that sit atop the fore front of their bodies, rather than eight. Harvestmen live only one year, dying in the winter when they are beset by cold.

Around my house, harvestmen are a pretty common site. And because of the insects that are drawn to my small vegetable garden, they are a welcome site. I beg them to prey on the six-legged critters to their belly's content (which probably isn't much since harvestmen only grow to be 1/4" long, excluding their legs of course). After watering my peppers the other day, I noticed this fellow stopping for a drink, and who can blame him, with as hot as it's been.

Harvestman Stopping for a Drink :: Fultondale, Alabama

Gardening: Already Bearing Fruit

Last week, I posted about having begun my garden (here), which contains two varieties of tomatoes, cubanelle and bell peppers. Well over the course of the week, things were beginning to look a little with both pepper plants. In spite of all the rain, they were just looking wilty and withery; or maybe because of the rain, since peppers and tomatoes like dry, hot weather.

Regardless, I had to do something, since the compost I had amended the soil with in the offseason was clearly lacking some vital mineral. So I did what I was able to avoid doing all of last summer - I applied some Miracle-Gro Tomato Plant Food. And eighteen hours later, the difference really was miraculous. The next morning all four plants were looking spry and healthy, and ready to produce many tasty morsels for me.

Bell Pepper Buds

The first little tomato

Cubanelle Pepper Flower

 Having already begun to see some insect damage to leaves, I decided it was time to bring in something to manage it. Last year, I used Sevin Bug Killer Spray, and I figured if Sevin was good, eight will be better. So I brought in some arachnid help to stave off those dirty devils who are trying to eat my plants.

Well that's all I've got for today, but future developments aren't far off, so keep looking for those updates. And please feel free to offer any suggestions or help; I'm all ears, as I'm still pretty green with all this gardening stuff.