Creepy Crawlies: Friends and Foes of the Gardener

For the past couple of weeks, I have been guilty of neglecting both my garden and blog. To some extent, my diminished interest can be blamed on the hornets, which have their now-mammoth nest near my roof garden. My lack of attention has cost me dearly. A host of mealy bugs, aphids and ants have made my brinjal plant their home. The basil has also been affected by a few black aphids.

This post is about few of the creepy crawlies that have come uninvited to my garden, at different times.

Ants

While ants in the garden can be useful -- they decompose organic matter -- occasionally they tend to eat the plant. Ants may also cultivate or "farm" other pests like aphids and mealybugs. There was a short period, when all my ladies fingers were being devoured by ants. Diatomaceous earth  (microscopic fossils of algae like, water plants) is supposed to be the best all-natural ant killer. But I couldn't find this miracle powder and so settled for the traditional, cure-all Neem oil spray. When that didn't work, I tried a thick paste of turmeric and soap. This helped marginally, but the paste had to be applied twice a day. And I didn't want to be overdosing on either soap or turmeric. Finally, after a couple of weeks, the ants did get fed up, quite literally, with my ladies finger and their numbers began dwindling. I think the ants actually quit because their voracious appetites could no longer be satisfied.

Ants Feeding on Immature Lady's Finger Pods

Aphids and Mealybugs

Aphids are also called plant lice. Both aphids and mealybugs suck the plant sap and can carry a host of plant diseases. The aphids on my brinjal had been unnoticed, because they were feasting from the underside of the leaves. It was only when I detected ants on my plant, that I uncovered a huge colony of aphids. Ants act as guardians of both aphids and mealybugs as they benefit from the honeydew (sweet secretions) that they secrete.

Mealybugs

Pale Green Aphids and White Mealybugs on the Leaf Underside

Caterpillars

While a butterfly is welcome in gardens, their predecessor, the caterpillar isn't. Here's a hungry baby caterpillar. Yeah! Caterpillars are ALWAYS hungry.

A Banished Caterpillar

Leaf Miners

These look like threads fused into leaves. They are actually larvae of various insects like beetles, moths and even wasps. The larvae tunnel their way through the plant tissue and live within the leaf. So far, simply removing the affected leaves is all I've had to do to keep them in check.

Leafminer on a Tulsi Leaf

Ladybirds

Set a bug to catch a bug. Lady birds are natural predators of aphids and many other plant pests.  I have spotted a couple of ladybirds on my brinjal plant. How they have sensed that my plant is in trouble I do not know. But I feel reassured to know that I'm not alone in my fight against the aphids.

Ladybird: Hunting Pests

Earthworms

Now here is a creepy crawly that clearly isn't a pest.  An indicator of healthy soil, earthworms are farmers' friends. I love finding them in my garden soil. The fatter they are, the more delighted I am. Not only do these worms aerate the soil, their castings act as natural fertilizer.

A Glistening Earthworm

Since harsh chemical insecticides are a no-no in my garden, I rely on natural pest control. Most of these are painfully slow to act. The Penguin Book of Gardening in India by Meera Uberoi has  plenty  of "Indian recipes" for driving away pests. Usually they call for turmeric, neem oil, soap solution (not detergent) and tobacco leaves (cigarettes will suffice if you can't find the leaves). There are some offbeat recipes too, like the one for snails. Apparently snails enjoy beer as much as many humans. So snails are to be trapped in bottles that have beer in them! But having tried some of these home remedies, I believe the best remedy is Prevention. A healthy plant is less likely to fall prey to pests.

I'll end my post with a video link of a beautiful kitchen garden. I'd watched this a year ago; yet I vividly remember the entire presentation. Watch till the end, on how to confuse pests, the Permaculture way.

Welcome Showers

While most of India has been hit by the South west Monsoons, Tamil Nadu as usual, has picked up only some of this rain. To get our fair share of downpour, we will have to wait till the end of the year, for the North east monsoons. Maximum temperatures are still in the 33 deg C - 36 deg C range.  However, even the occasional light showers that we've been getting are a blessing. The layers of dust on the trees have been washed off, the smaller plants aren't wilting any more, the city seems greener and everyone is more cheerful.

Lush View from the Western Side of Our Roof

Rain has Goaded the Lantana to Bloom

With each brief spell of rain, there are a few new appearances in the garden.

A recent appearance is the Keezha Nelli or Phyllanthus niruri. In Tamil, "Keezha" means down/under and "nelli" means berry. Under the leaves of this plant, you will find tiny green mustard seed-sized fruits. It is this feature that helps me distinguish it from other similar looking weeds. Though in Ayurveda, it is regarded highly, it is in reality an unassuming weed that chooses to spring up anyplace. As a child, I remember my mother telling me about its anti-jaundice properties. It also has several other medical benefits, including kidney stone prevention. With several trials underway, allopaths are seriously  looking at its potential. 

Phyllanthus Niruri or Keezha Nelli (in Tamil)

Tiny fruit on the Leaf Underside

Mushrooms have also been sprouting in parts of our garden.

Pushing Through the Dirt

A Fine Umbrella for Some Bug?

Like most Indians, I haven't a clue about which mushrooms are edible and which aren't. It's hard enough for an expert. Traditionally labelled as "tamasic", since it springs out of rotting and decaying matter, mushrooms haven't enjoyed a favourable reputation in India. We are beginning to change that as we discover the joys of eating them. Yet, the more orthodox among us, still like to keep away from these fungi.

Mushroom with a Reed Fused into it.

While mushroom cultivation requires a tightly controlled environment, I like the way these wild mushrooms choose to sprout anywhere with gay abandon. If only I could eat them!

Nests in the Garden

A crow nestling has emerged in the crow's nest that I'd written about in my earlier post. There were three eggs but only one baby crow made it into the world.

Crow Nestling: Nearly 20 Days Old

This is one spunky little chick that's always demanding food and attention from its parents. Actually it needn't bother. Both its parents are very indulgent and are forever fussing over their only baby. Tasty morsels are brought to it all day. Often, some of it is deposited on our bathroom windowsill. The other day, we had a large chicken foot placed on our windowsill. The hideous image of the severed foot completely freaked me out. But I imagine it was a treat for our baby crow.

Screaming for its Food: Like all Babies, Bird or Human

Another bird's nest that came to my notice is an exquisite tailorbird's nest. Abandoned by the birds, I was free to examine it from all angles. The nest is most impressive. Two large leaves have been delicately sewn together with plant fibre. 

Abandoned Tailorbird's Nest

Underside: Sewn together with Plant Fibre

The inside is lined with soft material, specially beak-picked by the parents. The tailorbird is a tiny bird, with a high-pitched chwee chwee call. Always flitting from branch to branch, it hardly ever stays still. And though I spot it ever so often, I've never been able to capture this bird with my lens. At least now I have shots of its workmanship.

Inside the Nest: Warm and Cosy

There's one more nest in the garden, that deserves mention. A hornets' nest. Though beautiful, this nest mostly evokes dread in me.  Here's a zoomed in picture of the nest, courtesy of my neighbour. The nest being on the top (fourth) floor of our building, my simple, point and shoot camera could not measure up to the task.

Hornets' Nest: Made of Chewed Plant Fibre and Wasps' Saliva

After a lot of research on the Internet, I've come to believe that this is the Greater Banded Hornet or the Vespa Tropica. Please correct me, if I am wrong. 

Greater Banded Hornet / Vespa Tropic: A Dead One

The sting of this wasp is rather painful. We know this for a fact as we've recently had two victims. While a bee stings once, a wasp can sting repeatedly and without any apparent provocation. What is more worrying is that a small percentage of people are allergic to the stings and if stung, can go into anaphylactic shock, which is potentially fatal.

In cooler climes, most wasps die in winter. But the so called winter in Chennai may simply go unnoticed by the wasps.  While I find the presence of the hornet's nest threatening, (especially on hot days), and am even contemplating its elimination, I'm also hoping I don't have to meddle with nature. Would the wasps do me a favour and relocate some place else. Or is this wishful thinking?

Today's Garden Visitor - The Rat Snake

This morning, a snake was spotted in the building's common garden. While snakes have been spotted ever so often in our garden, this one seemed worthy of special attention. At over 3 feet, it seemed too long to ignore. Most city folk don't know much about snakes. In fact,  many of us could easily mistake a worm for a snake. So for us urbanites, whether we can tell if a snake is venomous or not, is too much to ask for. Whenever a snake is causing inconvenience in Chennai, the Guindy Snake Park is contacted. The snake park employs a bunch of extremely professional snake catchers who are open to distress calls related to snakes.

Snake Catcher from the Guindy Snake Park

When the snake catcher arrived, he identified it as the rat snake. This snake is quite common and pretty harmless to humans. As its name suggests, it feeds on rats. However harmless they may be, snakes aren't welcome in urban dwellings. So it was bundled into a cloth bag and taken away to be released in the wild. With one less rat snake around, if the rat population rises, we have only ourselves to blame.

Holding the Snake Tight

My son and I were thoroughly impressed by the snake catcher. Without a hint of fear, our man held the struggling creature, strongly in his hands. These men are known to expertly handle even the deadliest of snakes, often with just a crowbar or even their bare hands. What they rely on is their excellent acumen, honed over generations. The snake catching Irula tribe are one of the best snake catchers in the world. Now I know who the hero of my next story for my son will be -- the Brave Snake Catcher from Guindy.

Brinjal or Eggplant or Aubergine - What's in a Name?

Brinjal or Eggplant or Aubergine

This vegetable of the Nightshade family is known by different names in different parts of the world: Aubergine in France, Eggplant in North America, and here in India we know it as Brinjal. Brinjal is native to India and there are nearly 2500 varieties of Brinjal grown here. They can be white, green, purple, round, long, huge, tiny, striped, etc. So when I sourced my brinjal seeds from the local nursery without knowing the variety, there was much suspense about the kind of fruit I would get. Nearly three months later I found out that my brinjal is the small, round, purple variety. 

Brinjal Bounty

Before cooking brinjal, one is advised to salt, rinse and drain it, to rid it of its slight bitterness. Raw Brinjal, in fact, can’t be eaten as they are somewhat bitter; the reason is that they contain minute amounts of nicotine. Here’s a fun fact sourced from Wikipedia: Nine Kgs of brinjal contain a cigaretteful of nicotine. But once brinjal is cooked, its flesh turns succulent, almost melting, with a rich, slightly meaty flavour. This vegetable is extremely versatile and there are a mind boggling number of recipes that one can choose from around the world. Very often, the brinjals in my kitchen find their way into sambhar, vangi bhaat (brinjal rice) or a tomato brinjal curry. Yet, Deep-fried Brinjal slices (Sicilian style) and Baba Ghanoush are my favourites.

A Recent Harvest

Salted Brinjal Slices: To be Rinsed and Drained

Baba Ghanoush is a wonderful Middle Eastern dish, in which baked brinjal is mashed and combined with olive oil and seasoning. There are many more mouthwatering brinjal recipes. Like the Turkish Imam Bayildi (brinjals stuffed with tomato, garlic and onions and simmered in olive oil). Imam Bayildi literally means the “Imam (Muslim Priest) fainted”; he fainted after eating the dish as it was so good. Now, with an interesting name like that, one is strongly urged to try it out.

 

Let me sign off with the story of an unusal  experiment. An Indian farmer from Chattisgarh has grafted Tomato and Brinjal into a single plant and is getting good results. Since both tomato and brinjal belong to the same family, such an experiment is possible. Here is the link to the video. Can we further this logic and grow all Solanaceae species in the same plant. Can we have a “potato, tomato, chilly, capsicum and brinjal all-in-one” plant? Somehow, I find the idea disagreeable, even if it is to bear fruit (pun intended).

Camouflage

What do you see in the picture below? A dried Almond tree leaf, a fallen almond and some other dried leaves. Look harder.

Camouflage: Spot the Odd One

Can you spot the spindly legs of the brown Leaf Insect sitting on the almond leaf? I nearly missed it, but when I saw the leaves move in the absence of a breeze, I looked closer and was in for a surprise. Not only does this creature look like brown leaves, it also tries to mimic the movement of leaves being blown in the wind. The insect rocks back and forth as it moves.

Brown Leaf Insect

Here is a clear shot of the insect. If someone can help me identify it more accurately, please let me know.

Meet the Oldest Tree in Chennai

The international headquarters of the Theosophical Society is located in Chennai, just a couple of miles from my home. Dedicated towards Theosophy, this unique society encourages the study of different religions and philosophies.  According to Lonely Planet, its library houses a vast collection of religious books, including “thousand-year-old Buddhist scrolls and intricate, handmade 19th-century bibles”. Yet, more often visitors, including myself, are drawn here for another reason – its natural beauty.  Of late, I’ve been making regular trips and I find I’m getting addicted to the fragrance and the loveliness of the place.

Burmese Pink Cassia

Tree Canopy

Vinka Lined Path leading to the Parsi Fire Temple

The entire campus is canopied by old, majestic trees. Paths leading to various bungalows and places of worship are lined with flowering shrubs that are often mobbed by swarms of butterflies and colourful dragonflies.  Although nature hasn’t been allowed to grow completely wild, here you will not find well manicured gardens, save for a few patches. Instead you may often find yourself under eerie bat colonies, buzzing bee hives or monstrous hornet nests. But it is this wilderness, in the heart of bustling Chennai, which I find so alluring.

Flying Fox Colony

Bee Hive Near the Cannon Ball / Nagalingam Tree

Hornet's Nest

The star attraction of the Theosophical Society is the Great Banyan Tree, the oldest tree in Chennai.  The tree is over 450 years old, and by the latest record, is spread over 65,000 square feet. It is not surprising then, that it can host a gathering of 3000 at a time.  The tree’s central trunk was destroyed in a storm, years ago, but now its prop roots support the tree and it continues to encompass more ground each passing year.  When one learns that the tree has been host to great souls like Gandhi, Maria Montessori, the Dalai Lama and J. Krishnamurti among others, one feels even more reverence for it. 

Great Banyan Tree: Over 450 years Old and Spread Across 65,000 sq ft.

There is another tree that characterizes the campus: the Nagalinga tree or the Cannon Ball tree. Native to the Amazonian rain forests, this is a tall tree with beautiful fragrant flowers that one can smell from a mile off. The Nagalinga flower attracts  hordes of bees and strangely it springs directly from the bark of the tree trunk.  If that’s not enough oddness for one tree, there’s more.  Its fruit is woody and resembles a cannon ball that can cause considerable harm if it were to fall on you. The flower is considered sacred in India as the petals resemble the hood of a Naga (snake) protecting a Shiva lingam (the stigma).

Nagalingam Tree/Cannon Ball Tree

Nagalingam Pushpa (Flower)

From Another Angle

Bordering the campus is the Adyar river, on the banks of which one can find many large water birds and Giant Ghost Crabs. And though I tried hard to get a picture of the Giant crab, they were just too quick for me. These crabs crawled into their holes, the moment they sensed my presence from afar. 

Cactus

Cactus Flowers

Palm Flowers

Snail

Enclosed within 100 acres of land, the Theosophical Society campus is a treasure house of diverse plant and animal species. The campus can easily be mistaken for a botanical garden. For a pictorial reference of the flora and fauna that reside here, click on the links you will find here.

Tamarind Drying

Harvested Coconuts

Rofous Treepie