What Do You Call It When A Shark, A Crocodile and a Giant Spider Walk Into The Bar? Just Another Day In Australia!
The fires that are burning so close to us now have become terrifying and more so for those now affected by the residents of Westside Road. The graphic pictures I have seen have brought me to tears. Strong wind gusts whipped this human caused blaze to epic proportions and many have lost their homes. The heroes on the front line have been battling hard to protect but have faced overwhelming conditions to save as much as possible and residents have left the area for their own safety which is important and give these men less to worry about. Weather conditions for the next week remain hot to extremely hot with no precipitation in the forecast. So stay safe and hydrated and be diligent to keep our home area safe.
Although my article is Spiders and Snakes. I am going to skip the Snakes side of it as I have nothing more I wish to say about Trump!
Spiders are not Insects they are Arachnids. They are air breathing creatures with 2 body segments, 8 legs and fangs which can inject venom to immobilize their prey. They are primarily carnivore and do not have red blood but blue blood due to the use of copper based molecules to transport Oxygen through their bodies. Many people have a fear of Spiders and that is unfortunate because you are never 10 feet from a Spider either indoor or outdoor the only exception to that fact is the Antarctic. There are more than 50,000 different species of Spiders around the world and in BC we host only 64 different species. What has brought this topic to mind is the presence of weblike patches on my lawn. I have seen this before and it is actually a Fungus. Dollar Spot Fungus is a result of our drought and plying great amounts of water will only make it worse. It appears on lawns that are under stress which at this time is wide spread. Once we get to cooler weather and can water properly some steps for good lawn management will bring the lawn back to its former beauty. This will include a fertilizing with a high nitrate fertilizer, removing thatch from the lawn and aeration. Watering should consist of a once a week good watering.
However some webs on our lawns are actually true Spider webs and will have Spiders in them.
Grass Spiders are actually a beneficial creatures which eat a lot of harmful insects that can do damage to both lawns and gardens. These Spiders can bite usually in self defence and the venom they have will not harm humans or pets.
Continue to give your gardens a good drink when needed.
Happy Gardening!
Samantha Nason
BS Ranch & Greenhouses
250 547 6567
sam1nason@gmail.com
