At the peak of the growing season, gardening 
questions are as common as weeds. Macomb County Consumer Horticulture Coordinator Sandra Richards answers timely queries on insects, lawn care, perennial and annual flowers, and related lawn and garden topics. 

Q. What's the best way to store gasoline for lawn mowers and other gasoline-powered equipment used around the yard?

A.  Store small amounts (2 to 5 gallons) of gasoline only in approved containers. Store it in a separate storage shed, not in the garage or basement, and away from potential sources of ignition, such as a pilot light on a water heater or furnace, electric motors that might produce a spark or any open flame. Refuel gas-powered equipment outdoors after letting the engine cool. Avoid breathing gasoline fumes and never siphon gasoline by mouth. Using fuel-stabilizing additives can extend fuel quality during storage.    

Q.  How do cicadas make their buzzing sound?

A.  Male cicadas have a pair of organs on the first segment of the abdomen. Each is basically a cavity with a lid. Inside is a membrane called a tymbal. The insect uses its muscles to make this membrane vibrate. This vibration creates the buzz, which the male uses to attract a mate.

Q. What makes those cone-shaped depressions in the sand that I see up north?

A.  These depressions are traps made by ant lion larvae to capture prey.  This lacewing relative digs a conical pit in the sand with itself buried at the bottom. Only its pincer-like jaws stick out of the sand, ready to capture any prey that slides down the loose sand and suck out its body fluids. Another name for ant lion larvae is doodlebugs. Ants are their most common food.  Ant lion larvae are about ¼ inch long with spiny, segmented bodies and oversized pincer-like mouthparts; their pits may be ¼ to ½ inch deep and up to 1½ inches in diameter. In dry sandy areas, a square yard of soil may be dimpled with a dozen or more.

Q.  What can I plant to attract butterflies to my garden?

A.  The all-time greatest butterfly flowers include asters, Joe-pye weed, black-eyed Susan, butterfly bush (buddleia), liatris, butterfly weed (Asclepias spp.), coreopsis, purple coneflower and milkweed. You can also attract butterflies that typically don't feed on flower nectar by providing plants for their larvae to feed on. Favorite larval host plants include asters, clover, hollyhock, lupine, mallow, marigold, milkweed, nettles/thistles, parsley, Queen Anne's lace, plantain, snapdragon, sorrel, turtlehead and violet. Plants in the cabbage family are favorite larval host plants of cabbage butterflies, but gardeners usually aren't inclined to share their broccoli and generally consider these 
caterpillars as pests.

Q.  What tunnels in my iris rhizomes in the summer? 

A.  The aptly named iris borer is the larva of a moth that lays eggs in iris foliage in late summer or fall. When the eggs hatch, the larvae chew their way into the leaves and then down through the stem into the rhizome, where they feed and grow until midsummer. Damaged rhizomes usually develop a secondary rot that makes them soft and mushy. Control is simple: remove all old foliage in the fall or early spring and destroy it, along with any eggs that might be present. Another control opportunity is in late summer. Dig iris rhizomes and destroy any containing borers. Check the soil around damaged rhizomes for the chestnut-brown pupae and destroy any that you find. This will reduce the number of adults laying eggs on your plants this fall.       

Q.  Why does my neighbor cut back her petunias and marigolds in midsummer and remove the flower buds from her chrysanthemums?

A.  Cutting back flowering annuals such as petunias, coleus and marigolds in midsummer removes long, leggy stems and developing seeds and promotes flowering. Simply cut plants to about half-size with hedge shears or rose nippers, fertilize and water. They'll look a little ragged for a while, but they'll be much more attractive soon. Chrysanthemums are perennial plants rather than annuals, but they, too, benefit from having their stem tips -- including flower buds -- removed two or three times in early summer. This pinching, as it's called, promotes branching and makes for a bushier plant with more flowers in the fall. 

Q.  My kids and I watched a praying mantis egg mass hatch, and the hatchlings immediately started eating one another! This makes me wonder just how effective it would be to put egg cases in your garden for pest control.

A.  The praying mantis is a predator that consumes many prey every day. It's not selective in what it eats, however, so it's as likely to chow down on beneficial insects as on pests. As you noticed, mantids are ready to eat as soon as they hatch and will eat their siblings if that is what's available. Camouflage coloration, a neck that allows the mantid to turn its head to spot its prey, large eyes, and forelegs well designed to grab and hold prey make mantids efficient and effective at ambushing other insects. But because they don't target pests, they aren't a big help with pest control.  

Q.  I'm looking for a fail-safe perennial for a partially shaded, sort of dry area. Any suggestions?

A.  The first thing to come to mind is daylilies. They tolerate a wide range of soils, grow well in full sun or shade, need little care, multiply themselves, grow vigorously, bloom profusely and over winter year after year. Each blossom lasts only one day, but established plants can produce literally hundreds of buds and so can remain in flower for a month or longer. Late summer or early fall is a good time to plant them.

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