Three Scary Bugs
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| Photo Credit: Robert Smaus |
| The adult fruit beetle looks like fine jewelry and only nibbles on damaged fruit. |
Walk out to get the paper on a nice California day in summer or fall and you may run smack into a spiderweb. Nearby is the maker: the fattest, hugest spider you’ve even seen. Later, while getting some fresh compost for the garden, you uncover a gargantuan grub. Disgusted, you bravely throw it to a hungry-looking jaybird, who flees in terror. Then as you weed and spread the compost, large, worrisome wasps buzz between the plants … and occasionally near your head.
Scary stuff, huh? But despite their actions or looks, these bugs are not out to get you. They are merely looking for garden pests or are busy breaking down compost. In other words: They are our garden friends and helpers. | Add Photo to Journal |  | | Photo Credit: Robert Smaus | | The 2-inch-long larva of the fruit beetle helps compost happen. |
It may be hard to believe, but that fat grub, often more than 2 inches long, is doing you a favor. It’s the larva of the green fruit beetle, and it eats only decaying vegetation. This garden visitor turns dead leaves into rich nutrients that will fertilize your yard in a gentle, natural way like nothing else can.
The good larvae of the fruit beetle become those huge metallic green scarab beetles that are such poor fliers. If you live in California, you know them – they’re the ones that tend to crash into things as they fly crazily across the yard. They also make a lot of noise as they go, and they only nibble on damaged fruit. (The beetles are actually pretty enough to be jewelry if you can figure out how to keep one on your lapel.)
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| Facts |
- June beetle grubs look very much like the larvae of the green fruit beetle, although somewhat smaller. The difference is that June beetle grubs do damage in the garden – especially to lawns, so look for them in the grass. You’ll find the “good” fruit beetle grub in your compost pile.
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| Tips |
- Those big wasps in your garden are more interested in the caterpillars eating your leaves than they are in you. While they do tend to be indifferent to humans and their activities, they may take an interest in building a home near yours. The paper wasp builds open, papery nests under eaves, while the dauber builds mud homes in attics. Leave both to their hunting, however, and they should leave you alone.
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