Cicada
Just For Fun March 14, 2021
I’m sure that by now a lot of people have heard about the cicadas that are due to emerge this year. Because this will be a once 17 years type of event, I wanted to talk about it. Let’s talk about what they look like, what they eat, and any other facts you might need to know about cicadas.
Adult cicadas are a winged insect that grows to be about 2.5 inches long. They sometimes get confused with locusts because people associate them both with coming in waves or plagues. Cicadas are not nearly as destructive as locusts. Their bodies are black with some orange stripes down the wings.
Cicadas are divided into different broods. The brood coming out this year is brood X (10). Some broods are on a 13-year cycle, and the brood like what we’re this year every 17 years. 12 broods that emerge every 17 years and 3 broods emerge every 13 years. Brood X is one of the most widespread as there will be appearances from the east coast to the Mississippi River and from New York down to Georgia.
We get cicadas every year, as there are also annual cicadas that emerge. These annual cicadas actually live 2-5 years, so they are annual in the sense that they reappear annually. This brood of cicadas is projected to have as many as 1.5 million cicadas per acre. That brings the total population to the trillions. These cicadas even though they only emerge for a few weeks have been living underneath us for the past 17 years. Scientists don’t know why 17 is the magic number. The cicadas will even wait a couple of days together if the weather is rainy. Underground they feed on tree roots. The damage that they cause is minimal. Once they are emerged, the damage that they do to plants is mostly cosmetic. I do not recommend spraying any pesticides for them. There will be so many of them that it will be impossible to control them with the use of pesticides. Their mouthpart is a piercing-sucking one. It’s designed like a straw so that they can slurp plant juices. This means that they can’t really bite you, but they might stick you if you antagonize them.
The main issue with cicadas is going to be the amount of noise that they create. In groups, their sound can reach 100 decibels. This is the same as a jet flyover at 1000 feet or a helicopter at 100 feet. The males trying to attract a female to mate create this noise. After mating, the female will lay her eggs inside the trees. If young trees are completely swarmed it can damage them. You can use a net to protect them. These eggs will hatch in 6-10 weeks. The nymphs fall to the ground and burrow in, starting the 17-year cycle over again.
Cicadas will begin to emerge when soil temperatures reach 64 degrees. We typically start to hit those temperatures the end of April. Cicadas do provide some benefits. The nymphs in the soil burrow and create channels for roots. They are a source of food for a lot of wildlife like trout and wild turkeys. Moles also feast on the nymphs that are underground.
If you have questions about the cicadas contact your County Extension Office or email me at [email protected].
Discover Dahlonega: When you’re stuck at home – Gardening tips from the experts
Arts & Entertainment, Lifestyle July 19, 2020
(Article by Courtney Randolph in conjunction with the Dahlonega-Lumpkin Chamber and Visitors Bureau)
Feeling a bit restless, and looking for something to do? We sure do love a good DIY, especially when it involves some vitamin D! Learn how to build your own DIY garden from JoAnn Goldenburg, owner of the Dahlonega Butterfly Farm. If vegetable gardens and medicinal plants are more your thing, learn some tips from one of our favorite doctors, Dr. Whitfield.
Follow these steps to build a thriving butterfly destination and watch the colorful visitors arrive!
What Are Host Plants? Do I Need Them?
Photo: The Dahlonega Butterfly Farm
“HOST PLANTS are the plants where the female butterflies lay their eggs and where the caterpillars forage. Host plants aren’t always the prettiest plants in the garden but they’ll definitely bring butterflies into your yard. A few common host plants include Milkweed for the Monarchs, Parsley & Fennel for the Black Swallowtails, and Passion Vine for the Gulf Fritillary (to name a few). Keep this in mind; caterpillars eat a lot! So if you want to enjoy raising your own caterpillars – make sure to plant several host plants.”
What are “nectar plants” and how do I choose which one to plant?
Photo: The Dahlonega Butterfly Farm
NECTAR PLANTS support adult butterflies (and other beneficial insects) with their sweet nectar and add beautiful seasonal color to your garden. It’s a good idea to have a variety of nectar plants which bloom throughout the summer to give your butterflies a regular source of food. There are hundreds of nectar plants to choose from but you’ll want to pick the right plants based on your zone and location. North Georgia is in Zone 7a, which is great for growing Perennial Lantana, Verbena, Coreopsis, Zinnias, Black-Eyed Susan, and Buddlei. For a seasonal pop of color you can also add annuals, Begonias, Pansies, Impatiens and Geraniums. And don’t forget the shrubs and trees; Butterflies need a safe place to rest and sleep.
How To Create a Butterfly Garden
Photo: The Dahlonega Butterfly Farm
A SUNNY SPOT and a small water puddle are also important to complete your butterfly habitat. Butterflies love to soak up the “sun” because they’re cold blooded and need the heat to fly. Butterflies need a water source to stay hydrated.. You can try adding a shallow dish to your garden with water or fruit juice. As a matter of fact, some butterflies prefer fruits and will be happy to feed on rotting bananas, oranges, mangoes or even dung. Last but not least; try to eliminate or reduce the use of pesticides and herbicides. Chemicals aren’t safe for butterflies, pets, or humans. Butterflies need a healthy environment and so do we!”
Top Photo provided by instagram account user, @i_shoot_people77
“Most of us find “sheltering in place” something to be endured until the COVID-19 pandemic is over. Plants, on the other hand, are of course happy to stay put and flourish in dirt, no less. And like most of us, they do even better when they are surrounded by nurturing companions, hence the gardening practice of companion planting.
Now that most of us are expected to spend most of our time at home, an escape to the garden for exercise and sun is a logical stress reliever to being home bound. So, what better time than this spring planting season to add to our gardening “know how”?
To that end, I would like to share some of my favorite gardening tips, especially for our first-time gardeners. So, let’s talk about frost dates, using planting calendars, and companion planting techniques which may help you grow a beautiful and productive garden.”
“Frost dates can be confusing. Gardeners talk about the last “hard” or “killing” frosts and “light” frosts. A frost date is the average date of the first or last light freeze that occurs in spring or fall. Dave’s Garden website tells us that, on average, our risk of frost in Dahlonega is from October 27 through April 10. And, almost certainly, we will receive frost from November 14 through March 21. We are almost guaranteed not to get frost from May 1 through October 9. Our frost-free growing season is about 200 days. I try to be relatively conservative with frost dates and use March 30 as the last killing frost date and May 15 as the last average light frost date in Dahlonega. There will be a lot of variation in these reported dates due to local weather, microclimates or topography, but the conservative dates seem to work well for me.”
“These are wonderful slide rule type planners that you can use to enter the last frost date and learn when you should start seeds indoors and/or outdoors. They provide information such as recommended plants, dates to start indoor seeds and the types of seeds to start, first outdoor planting dates, and expected harvest dates. You can also find programs on line to help you develop and save your own gardening data.
My first garden planner was called “Clyde’s Garden Planner – Clyde’s Vegetable Planting Slide Chart” which I found on line. I also have a “Garden Vegetable Guide” that United Community Bank gave away a few years ago, and it provides data such as: how easy or challenging different seeds are to grow, when to start or plant them, planting depth, row width/ spacing between seeds, days to maturity, hardiness and type of soil. The University of Georgia has a fantastic web site you can easily access. Just google: Vegetable Garden Calendar, UGA Cooperative Extension.”
What Should I Plant? What is Companion Planting?
“Said to be part experience, part folklore, and part wishful thinking, most companion planting teachings are passed down by gardeners who experimented with different pairings of plants and had some success. The companion planting technique is the result of placing various crops close to each other so they symbiotically compliment each other leading to greater vigor, growth and often better flavor. Some companion plants are used to repel and deter insect pests and diseases. Companion planting also involves separating plants that are antagonistic to each other.
Companions for tomatoes include: amaranth, asparagus, basil, bean, borage, calendula, celery, chive, cleome, cosmos, cucumber, garlic, lemon balm, lettuce, marigold, mint, nasturtium, onion, parsley, peas, sage, stinging nettle, sow thistle, and squash. Amaranth may repel insects. Basil improves growth and flavor and repels mosquitoes and flies. Borage improves growth and flavor and repels tomato worms. Bee balm, chives, and parsley are reported to improve tomato health and flavor. Garlic repels red spider mites and garlic sprays help control late blight. Stinging nettle nearby improves taste, while sow thistle aids growth. Tomato antagonists include: cabbage and members of the Brassica family (broccoli, Brussels sprouts, collards, cauliflower, kale, kohlrabi, rutabaga, turin), corn, fennel, and mature dill plants.
“Some of my favorite resources on Companion Planting include: Carrots Love Tomatoes by Louise Riotte and Great Garden Companions by Sally Jean Cunningham. (My disclaimer: Contrary to popular belief, tomatoes and carrots may not have a symbiotic relationship. In fact there is some suggestion that tomato plants can stunt the growth of carrots.)
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