The International Space Station, Blueberries and Fireflies

Tuesday night Northern Ontario had clear skies and, according to spaceweather.com, the International Space Station was to be visible traveling across the night sky about 11:18. Outside at 11:15, away from the house to get the best view, standing and waiting, the mosquitoes were in full force, but, the night sky was perfectly clear. Then, there it was just above the trees, then it was gone, then it was back again… what was going on?? No, that’s not the space station, that’s a firefly, just a bit eager for a view of the station maybe. A little patience and then a great view of the space station traveling above us. It was simply a light in the night sky but knowing what it actually is makes it a wonderfully amazing sight to see. Yesterday, July 24th, a Russian supply ship, Progress 34, was launched from Kazakhstan and can now be seen following the Space Station.
The space weather site is a great place for date and time information on everything from sunspots, aurora alerts, asteroid encounters, satellite tracking, the Space Station and Russian supply ship, and even space weather which, currently, shows the Solar Wind speed at 486.4 km/sec with a density of 1.9 protons/cm3. Want to know what that means? The site will explain that as well. Cool site for those who look up. If you are really, really, into the alignment of planets, geomagnetic storms, meteors, Space Station flybys or when the best aurora’s will be in your area, well, they even have a service that will phone you and tell you so you will never have to miss another one.
From looking up to looking down now, the wild blueberries are coming along well. I picked a 2lt basket last Tuesday in about an hour. Not bad for the backyard, especially since I am a picky picker, I pick the bigger ones and I don’t take all the berries from any area. I leave lots for the wildlife as well as for new plants next year and I am cautious not to pick the unripe or damage a plant, so, needless to say, I take my time. They call for rain for the next 5 days, a few nice sunny days will help to increase the sugar content in the berries. More picking in my future I can assure you.
Looking up, looking down and eating healthy food.

Mulch and Slugs

As great as mulch is as always there is a down side. Mulch is the perfect place for a slug to take up residence since they love damp earth and are mainly night creatures. If you have a slug problem you will have to keep your eye on the mulch.

There are many ways gardeners deal with slugs such as the popular “beer bath”. A shallow dish of beer placed in the garden attracts the slugs and they drown. The down side seems to be beer needs to be replaced daily, after the first night the slugs do not seem to be attracted. If you have had ongoing success with this method let me know.

Other methods, like, a spray bottle half and half water and vinegar sprayed on the slugs will kill them as will a sprinkle of salt. If you don’t mind stalking the slugs those will work. Placing a piece of hard plastic in the garden will create a trap as they will gather there, then you lift the plastic and dispose of the slugs. I have heard of using a shingle for this but I have issues with using shingles due to all the tar and chemicals they are made of.

Diatomaceous earth is sharp and will deter or kill and slug that crawls over it, a circle half-inch deep around any plant is enough. Unfortunately it will also kill any other soft body creature, such as worms. I will not do anything to deter, dislodge or kill worms so I do not use diatomaceous earth or “sharp sand”. Wood ash, lime or cinders is a good replacement.

This is why I like hay, when I lay it down it is in a “slice or leaf” and I can lift it and check under and remove any pest I find. One gardener I know has a recipe he swears by. Early in the season he gathers all the slugs he can find, and then he blends them up into a liquid and sprays the lower stem of the plant and the ground around. He swears he never has a slug infestation though his neighbours do. Personally, that stuff is not going into my blender!!

Any pest control techniques work for you? Share them here.