Banana Spiders

The morning after last week’s storms, our morning walk was littered with ‘conkers’, the large and shiny seeds of the Horse Chesnut (Aesculus hippocastanum). Ryan started picking some of the nicer ones up. “The people at work”, he said, “have been discussing whether or not conkers repel spiders. I’m going to try it.”

Sources Tetranychus urticae Female of the red form of the spider mite Scale : mite body length ~0.5 mm Creative commons by Gilles San Martin, on Flickr Chuck Crandall ‘Whats wrong with my plant?’

There are a lot of things to go wrong with plants in the greenhouse but a red spider mite infestation is one of the most frustrating. This tomato plant in India has had its day.

Yes you can rest happily with this organic treatment for your Aphids. It is called ‘spiders’ and they can be found in every garden and often in your own home.

Photo from http://click-shubd.blogspot.com/2008/04/spider-plant.html

I have just finished eating a Fyffes banana grown in Costa Rica. They were certified by the Rainforest Alliance and were sold as ‘Ripe, snack size bananas’ and a very appropriate  name it was. In our fruit bowl we also have ‘organic Fairtrade bananas fro the Dominican Republic cutesy of the EEC at least until brexit by which time they will be well overripe.

We all love this nutrient-rich fruit that is packed with potassium and many other vitamins and minerals. But the saddest fact is they have a short shelf life. The day you buy them, they are fresh and firm, and pretty soon, they turn brown and floppy. How to avoid this? How to keep them fresh and flavorful? This article has the answers.

If you like spider plants but have too many of them in your collection then don’t worry! Here are some amazing Plants that Look Like Spider Plants that must add to your plant club!

Like every indoor plant, the Spider plant requires repotting depending on various factors. It helps this stunning plant in its overall well-being. Whether you are a beginner or a pro at repotting your Spider Plant, here is everything that you will need to know on How to Repot a Spider Plant.

Banana shrubs (Magnolia figo; formerly Michelia figo) are drought tolerant, evergreen shrubs with beautiful, creamy yellow flowers, which are edged in purple and look like miniature Southern magnolia blooms. This great similarity of the banana shrub flowers to those of magnolias is the reason for the recent taxonomic change to Magnolia figo.

The yellow garden spider (Argiope aurantia) is also known as a writing spider. Legend has it that if you disturb or damage the web, then the spider will write your name when it reweaves the web. One myth is that if this happens, you will die soon. Another story is that if the spider hears you speak someone’s name or counts someone’s teeth, it will write that person’s name when weaving the web. It is always interesting to me how these garden myths get started.

Summer is a time of a lot of insect activity. Some of the best insect theater is fireflies at night and wasps during the day. For example, like an ant dragging another creature three times bigger than itself, spider wasps in the insect family Pompilidae can put on a show. And perhaps the best Pompilid showstopper due to its sheer determination and beauty is the rusty spider wasp, Tachypompilus furrugineus.