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Across the Fence:  ladybugs  |
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CabinCreek-Kentucky
True Blue Farmgirl
8529 Posts
Frannie
Green County
Kentucky
USA
8529 Posts |
 Posted - Oct 30 2005 : 6:39:00 PM
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| is your area infested with those nasty little 'asian ladybugs' that come by the ka-jillions when the weather turns cold? i saw our first one today! |
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MeadowLark
True Blue Farmgirl
2206 Posts
USA
2206 Posts |
Posted - Oct 30 2005 : 7:58:06 PM
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Creepy little pests...what's a farmgirl to do????
If I keep a green bough in my heart, the singing bird will come. |
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CabinCreek-Kentucky
True Blue Farmgirl
8529 Posts
Frannie
Green County
Kentucky
USA
8529 Posts |
Posted - Oct 30 2005 : 8:54:24 PM
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Creepy little pests...what's a farmgirl to do????
does anyone have any great remedies?
(i mostly 'windex-spray' them on my windows .. and suck them up with the vacuum cleaner! |
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greyghost
True Blue Farmgirl
650 Posts
Lynn
Summerville
Georgia
USA
650 Posts |
Posted - Oct 31 2005 : 06:25:10 AM
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| I don't kill them... I move them to my rosebushes so they can eat any aphids that may be there. |
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therusticcottage
True Blue Farmgirl
4439 Posts
Kay
Vancouver
WA
USA
4439 Posts |
Posted - Oct 31 2005 : 07:43:21 AM
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I just leave them be. If they get in the house I move them outside. Fortunately we haven't had many. I know some people around here who have had the whole side of their house covered with them - YUCK!
http://rusticcottage.blogspot.com/ |
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quiltedess
True Blue Farmgirl
296 Posts
Nancy
Priest River
ID
USA
296 Posts |
Posted - Oct 31 2005 : 4:23:59 PM
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They swarm around our big window on the south side of the house. Inside. I usually have to vacuum them. I never can tell where they're coming from. But they definately have been coming inside the last couple of weeks.
Nancy
http://quiltedprairie.blogspot.com/ |
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CabinCreek-Kentucky
True Blue Farmgirl
8529 Posts
Frannie
Green County
Kentucky
USA
8529 Posts |
Posted - Oct 31 2005 : 6:24:11 PM
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[I don't kill them... I move them to my rosebushes so they can eat any aphids that may be there.
i'm not sure these are the kind that eat aphids .. and there are MILLIONS and BILLIONS and ZILLIONS of them! i have friends who report that they will be 2 and 3 inches DEEP (dead) on their barn floors! now THAT is more ladybugs than anyone needs .. these are not the cute little red ones .. they are orange-y and STINK if you squash them and will even bite i am told. |
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CabinCreek-Kentucky
True Blue Farmgirl
8529 Posts
Frannie
Green County
Kentucky
USA
8529 Posts |
Posted - Oct 31 2005 : 6:25:57 PM
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They swarm around our big window on the south side of the house. Inside. I usually have to vacuum them.
yes, they love SUNNY windows! and YES .. they somehow get INSIDE the windows by the thousands! i do the 'vacuum' thingie too!
i wonder if there is a way to keep them from ever coming back.
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kydeere40744
True Blue Farmgirl
1132 Posts
Jessica
Kentucky
USA
1132 Posts |
Posted - Oct 31 2005 : 7:40:53 PM
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Funny ya'll talk about ladybugs because one of the things I love to collect is ladybug collectibles (not the real live bugs). I did a little bit of research and came across a few methods to rid of them:
. Why do ladybugs come into my house in the winter time?
A. Ladybugs are attracted to the light colored houses. Especially, homes that have a clear southwestern sun exposure. Older homes tend to experience more problem with aggregations due to lack of adequate insulation. The ladybugs come in through small cracks around windows, door ways and under clap boards. They want to hibernate in a warm, comfortable spot over the cold months of winter. Ladybugs gather in groups when they hibernate, so if you see one, you can be sure more will follow. The best way to keep them out is to repair damaged clap boards, window and door trim and to caulk small cracks.
Q. Once the ladybugs are in my house, will they eat anything?
A. No. Ladybugs don't eat fabric, plants, paper or any other household items. They like to eat APHIDS. Aphids are very small, but very destructive pest that feed on plants. (If you have rose bushes, you have probably seen aphids.) Ladybugs, while trying to hibernate in your house, live off of their own body fats. They, also, prefer a little humidity. But our homes are usually not very humid during the winter. In fact, they are rather dry causing most of your ladybug guests to die from dehydration. Occasionally, you might witness a ladybug in your bathroom getting a drink of water. Now, that's a smart lady!
Q. How can I get them out of my house?
A. If you don't have a lot, just leave them. They will leave when spring arrives. Disturbing them will only cause them to stress out leaving yellow markings on your walls. The yellow stuff, you see, is not waste matter, but rather, their blood. Ladybugs release a small amount of their blood which is yellow and smells, when they sense danger. Some people have said that it does stain on light colored surfaces.
Q. But, I really want the ladybugs out of my house!
A. Use a "shop vacuum". This type of vacuum is easy to use for collect ladybugs. When using this to vacuum up ladybugs, use a clean bag or pad the bottom with a cloth. After all is clean, release the unwelcome guests outside.
Q. Is there anything else I can use to get the ladybugs out of my house?
A. Yes. There is a product called a Ladybug Black Light Trap. It uses radiating black light to attract and contain the ladybugs. See more information on the Infestion Page of the web site. (www.ladybuglady.com)
And I've seen this listed:
As a suggestion to one question futher up about a way to get rid of lady beetles, I put a container with water, a drop of dish soap liquid and sugar on the widow sill where the beetles are. They are almost instantly attracted to the solution and dive right in. And because the soap coats the wings, they can't fly out again. Sounds mean, but we have literally thousands in our house, and since we are under renovations we can't seal the house. Vacuuming is a waste of time....Any container will do, but I have been experimenting with different kinds, and the best is a plastic opaque-type container (my best one is a container I got muffin papers in) or a margarine or sour cream container, nothing you want to use again, though! The beetles don't seem to like glass jars though. I don't actually measure, I fill the container about 3/4 with water, add a drop or two of liquid soap, and just pour in the sugar, maybe 2 tbsps or so. I know it isn't very technical, but it really seems to work well. There seems to be a ton of beetles here, probably because of spring coming, and I have to dump the containers a couple of times a day, and refill. I put the containers where the beetles are, so on the window sill, under my son's night light at night...
And this one:
Trapping. An apparatus to trap flying nuisance insects was recently developed by USDA-ARS scientists. The collection apparatus for lady beetles calls for a 15-inch by 8-inch plastic bag, either with or without an insecticidal pest strip. This bag must be emptied or replaced periodically when it fills with captured insects. A blacklight lamp is recommended for indoor use. Because this trap relies on a light source, it should be used in darkened areas of a structure
Jessica~Miss Wilma's Niece
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tiffany01
True Blue Farmgirl
134 Posts
Tiffany
Indiana
USA
134 Posts |
Posted - Nov 01 2005 : 06:43:19 AM
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| Stinky, nasty little things! Non-chalantly wandering around our house and garden, trying to pretend that we won't notice that they're brownish-orange instead of red. Glad to hear that I'm not the only one using the vacuum technique. |
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Mari-dahlia
True Blue Farmgirl
269 Posts
Marianne
Hoosick Falls
New York
USA
269 Posts |
Posted - Nov 02 2005 : 04:54:16 AM
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| It is a matter of tolerance level. When they are all over the ceiling and windows and you start hearing crunch noises as you walk on them because they have fallen from the ceiling at night, you vacuum. Here in the NE they all hibernated in the clapboards and then this week has been 70 degrees and all of a sudden they all came out again, at one time. |
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CabinCreek-Kentucky
True Blue Farmgirl
8529 Posts
Frannie
Green County
Kentucky
USA
8529 Posts |
Posted - Nov 02 2005 : 05:58:10 AM
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jessica .. thanks for that information .. going to get me some soapy water ... and try that little trick .. i mostly do the vacuum thing .. oh .. and spray them with 'windex' .. cuz' it does 'double duty!
we live in olde log cabins .. so . i don't think there is any way to ever 'seal' all the cracks .. i'm trying to learn to 'endure' frannie |
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thehouseminder
True Blue Farmgirl
361 Posts
USA
361 Posts |
Posted - Nov 02 2005 : 06:38:50 AM
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I must be a nut. I hang ladybug houses in my garden.
I guess it's because my mother has always called me "Ladybug." If I see one, I feel a surge of happiness. Like Jessica, I have a collection of ladybug stuff. Everyone who has ever heard Mom call me that brings me something. My favorites are a Michael Simon cardigan sweater encrusted in 1" beaded ladybugs and a "jeweled" Enid Collins Ladybug box bag from the 60's.
Lucinda
When we were young, there were moments of such perfectly crystallized happiness that we stood stock still and silently promised ourselves that we would remember them always. And we did. --Holly J. Burkhalter , "Four Midwestern Sisters' Christmas Book"
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Across the Fence: ladybugs |
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ladybugs
