I admit openly and freely I am a bug and weed bigot. There are weeds I will kill the moment I see them. My current target is spotted knapweed. It is an invasive that keeps all the native plants from growing. It is prolific. Once it invades and area it hangs on.
Then there are other weeds that I actually collect the seeds and plant them all around. My favorite is butterfly weed. It is a gorgeous plant with beautiful orange flowers and the butterflies love it.
Which leads me to my bug prejudices. I do what I can to bring big bumble bees, butterflies and moths into the yard. I love seeing them but get me even near a deerfly and I come out swinging. Those are number one on my hit list and I mean that literally.
They attack everything. Several of my poor chickens have swollen eyes from deerfly bites on their face. The dog is swarmed with them as soon as he goes outside. And these nasties don’t poke a hole in you like mosquitoes oh no they slice a chunk out. And it takes like three hits to kill the things.
The wildlife suffers so this time of year and they don’t complain they just get on with it. I am awed everyday at the tenacity and beauty of life. Except deerflies.
May you have neither a hole poked, nor a slice taken.
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