Before I continue on with my blog, I'd like to take a few paragraphs to remember someone, who though not a Master Gardener, did a lot for both the horticulture department at Solano College and the Horticulture Club there. Although Jim never became a Master Gardener, he was well-known to our group as quite a few Master Gardeners belong to the Hort Club and/or took the classes at the College. I mean, of course, Jim Darling who I have known since before 1999 and who recently passed away. Jim was the proverbial “good kid”. He was gracious and friendly to all and was one of the biggest boosters of the department. Jim started out as a fellow student and then later became the “hired help” for the Hort Department, taking over after George Flook left for other parts and adventures.

He will be remembered for his amazing plant knowledge, friendly “Hi Yas”, and just being a familiar face to the many horticulture students who passed though the classroom and gardens. Good bye, Jim!! We miss you!

On to the rest . . . The other day, while reading my Sacramento Bee, in the “Insight” section was an article titled “How many types of bugs live inside your home?” Having the previous evening been extremely startled by the sight of a large(!!) spider repelling from the fan in the family room – after picking up my book, afghans, and dog from the floor where they got tossed – I carefully went to the coffee table where it had landed. Bruce, who was awake by this time, repeatedly asked where it landed and was repeatedly told; I, brave soul, went to check: a small-sized wolf spider. No harm, no foul and all was good. The next morning, was when I read the article.

Did you know that there are approximately 700!! Different types of arthropods, invertebrates with exoskeletons (soft bodies, hard outsides) that can be found in the average home. Of course, no home has them all (thankfully) but spiders, crustaceans (think sow bugs, etc), and others can and do share even the cleanest of homes with us. Most are less than a few millimeters long, so don't panic just yet.

There are the oblivious insects that can be seen such as cockroaches, earwigs and fleas, but most are teeny tiny insects that are practically invisible and unseen by the human eye. In the study of 50 homes within 30 miles of Raleigh, NC, entomologist Matt Bertone and his colleagues conducted searches that included the use of knee pads, head lamps, tweezers and numerous vials of alcohol; the result was over 10,000 arthropods collected. The goal was not the total number of specimens collected, BUT the types of insects found. The result of all this research: the average households of humans live with around 100 distinct insect species. The species you may have depends on your lifestyle: fleas – you have pets; carpet beetles – you have carpeting or a lot of area rugs; fungus gnats – you have indoor plants, etc.
One of the most prevalent insects found were cobweb spiders. gall midge flies and ants. Every home tested during the research had those. Most of these common pets rarely do damage to you or your property so there is no real need for insect spray (and please remember that spiders are arachnids and not insects). This reminds me of a fact that I once read on the inside of a Snapple lid: “the average person swallows 8 spiders in their sleep during their life time”. Great reading, right?

The bones for this blog were from the Sacramento Bee on Wednesday, January 20, 2016 was written by Erin Blakemore of the Washington Post.