That’s what my father said as my husband and he strolled along in the meadow one evening when he was visiting. You can see them in the picture below. They are indeed strolling along. Apparently I do amuse him (them).
Truth is I did buy some bugs. But they weren’t the ones my Pop was talking about. He was talking about little bugs that swarm. The bugs I bought don’t swarm.
What did I buy? And perhaps more importantly, why did I buy them? Sure, I like animals, but I don’t really have any affection for bugs, not so much that I would ever buy any. But I do love my horses. I bought the bugs for them. They are actually Fly Parasites (Latin name: Muscidifurax raptor, Muscidifurax raptorellus & Muscidifurax zaraptor). I had heard about them in one of my online courses, from another woman who hated flies and how they bothered her horses.
Because I woke up in the middle of the night one day last spring worrying (pretty typical) that once the nice weather arrived¸ my horses would be tortured by flies, I decided to try the bugs (wasps). So every two weeks I get a little 6”x6”x6” box. In the box is a plastic bag with a bit of wood shavings and what look like a bunch of mouse droppings. I sprinkle these “droppings” around my manure pile, in the field where there is more moisture than not, around the barn, anywhere I think there is enough manure or mud and sludge to be good fly breeding grounds. They hatch, look for fly larvae and destroy them.
I never see the bugs (although I know they hatch because the droppings disappear). They are small, they don’t swarm, and they don’t bite humans or other animals (like my horses or dogs). They simply keep the fly population down. So far I have been really happy with the results. Hot humid days that were typically a fly filled hell, are simply hot and humid, nothing more. We’ll see how things go in July when the flies are usually at their worst, but so far, even my husband has to admit the flies are down.
So yes, Pop, your daughter does buy bugs. And yes, my friends and family do see me wandering around the yard every other Tuesday sprinkling little black specs all about. And yes some of them have laughed at me. But my horses seem happy. And when the horses are happy, I am happy! It’s as easy as that.
What did I buy? And perhaps more importantly, why did I buy them? Sure, I like animals, but I don’t really have any affection for bugs, not so much that I would ever buy any. But I do love my horses. I bought the bugs for them. They are actually Fly Parasites (Latin name: Muscidifurax raptor, Muscidifurax raptorellus & Muscidifurax zaraptor). I had heard about them in one of my online courses, from another woman who hated flies and how they bothered her horses.
Because I woke up in the middle of the night one day last spring worrying (pretty typical) that once the nice weather arrived¸ my horses would be tortured by flies, I decided to try the bugs (wasps). So every two weeks I get a little 6”x6”x6” box. In the box is a plastic bag with a bit of wood shavings and what look like a bunch of mouse droppings. I sprinkle these “droppings” around my manure pile, in the field where there is more moisture than not, around the barn, anywhere I think there is enough manure or mud and sludge to be good fly breeding grounds. They hatch, look for fly larvae and destroy them.
I never see the bugs (although I know they hatch because the droppings disappear). They are small, they don’t swarm, and they don’t bite humans or other animals (like my horses or dogs). They simply keep the fly population down. So far I have been really happy with the results. Hot humid days that were typically a fly filled hell, are simply hot and humid, nothing more. We’ll see how things go in July when the flies are usually at their worst, but so far, even my husband has to admit the flies are down.
So yes, Pop, your daughter does buy bugs. And yes, my friends and family do see me wandering around the yard every other Tuesday sprinkling little black specs all about. And yes some of them have laughed at me. But my horses seem happy. And when the horses are happy, I am happy! It’s as easy as that.