A little insect humor

Hope you enjoy this recent email conversation between me and some of our entomologists.

David Goforth
Client reports her son finding a white grasshopper. I don’t guess I have ever seen a white grasshopper but maybe I haven’t been looking. Maybe when they first molt they are white and I have never been there at the right time. Do you think a white grasshopper is rare and do you have any desire to own it? Thanks.

Specialist #1
I think you guessed right about the new molt. Next time you find a grasshopper nymph, keep your eyes on it and follow it around day and night for a week or two until it molts.

Specialist #2
That sounds about right. This is how references to white elephants got started -- you have to be there when it molts to see it, but who wants to follow an elephant around for weeks or months waiting for that to happen? All that time and expense. Been there, dung that.

David Goforth
Thanks. I have never even seen pictures of a cast elephant skin. They must not last long in nature.

Specialist #2
Didn't you ever wonder where suede came from?

Some friends I met on the yellow brick road

The good witch, Dorothy, Toto, Scarecrow, Lion, tinman and me at the 2009 Cabarrus County fair. See related post below.

Wicked Witch

The 2009 Cabarrus County Master Gardener fair booth motif was the Wizard of Oz. The carniverous plants shouldn't have went with the wicked witch but the washtub fit the motif so perfect that we did it anyway.

County Fair Booth 2009

Cabarrus County Master Gardeners booth theme for 2009 was The Wizard of Oz. The good witch planted useful plants including vegetables while the curse of the bad witch was invasive plants, disease and insects.

Acorn Squash

Last year I grew acorn squash from some seed I picked up at Lowe's. They had an okay taste (not a great taste) and I sold them with no problem. Acorn squash isn't an easy crop for this area, but since they sold so readily I thought I would try it again. I went to the catalogs, bought one the writer claimed had the best taste. These are great tasting acorn squash. Best I have ever eat. Which is good because it looks like I am going to have to eat them all. I have drop the price to 2/3rd of last year's price and still haven't sold them. There is no way to know for sure but I suspect the problem is that they are not green. Last year the acorn squash were green. This year they are not. These are a lot prettier but they are not green. The seed catalog writer suggested that people would enjoy them on the table as decoration for a few weeks and then cook them. I didn't realize he was talking about the growers.

Links for Daniel Stowe Botanical Garden Talk.

Here are all my posted newsarticles. http://www4.ncsu.edu/~djgofort/. In specific fruit varieties are covered here http://www4.ncsu.edu/~djgofort/Fruit23.htm. Here is a link to Vegetable Gardening Guide http://www.ces.ncsu.edu/depts/hort/hil/pdf/ag-06.pdf. More info on vegtables and fruit.
http://www.ces.ncsu.edu/depts/hort/consumer/hortinternet/vegetable.html
http://www.ces.ncsu.edu/depts/hort/consumer/hortinternet/fruitandnuts.html

Irrigation system

I rigged an irrigation system using a sump pump that I had, along with a generator I had on hand. I drilled a bunch of small holes in a salvaged plastic barrel for a pre filter, then dropped the sump pump and the barrel in the creek. I used a nylon rope to keep the sump pump turned on. I hooked the pump to a garden hose to the drip irrigation filter then to the spagetti tube. The spagetti tube is normally inside the drip tube but I pulled it out for the picture. I had 5 rows of drip tape about 150 feet long on this system. In the early season there wasn't a need for the irrigation but when it got dry, the system should have run 4 or 6 hours each day. I didn't manage to run it enough but what I did was certainly worthwhile. I realize sump pumps are not designed for irrigation. There was less than 10 feet of head and the drip system is designed for 10 lbs of pressure but will work on slightly less. Any more head or any more drip lines and the system probably wouldn't have worked. I also realize there was a lot of wear and tear on the generator. (I intend to replace the generator anyway. It doesn't have a plug in to run my 220 volt well. ) However, I got a lot of value for the actual money I spent.