I decided to begin cutting back the ornamental grasses on this beautiful spring day after a long Oklahoma winter. Sometimes I have burned them back before the new green sprigs started and I can tell you it is a much faster, less labor intensive procedure, but Bob told me at breakfast that a new burn ban went into effect this morning, so there went that plan.
Ornamental grasses are my favorite perennial landscape material. They deliver a good show in all four seasons, are easy to start and propagate, and best of all...not heavy drinkers.
Their
only downside is that they need an early spring haircut. This usually results in huge piles of debris
to rake, load, and haul off…some sniffling and sneezing because of the dust
they have caught and stored here on the plains…and a few blisters to my hands
from the repetitive motions of the clipping.
But
today I was glad that I hadn’t burned them as I began to notice dozens of Ladybugs crawling out beneath my clippers.
“So, Ladybug, where did you spend your winter?” “Ahh, the Lordbug and I vacationed here in the
region of Maiden Grass. And you?” “ We traveled a bit further to the other side of
the garage and wintered on the Isle of Zebra Grass.”
As I cut
and piled away, I began to wonder about Ladybugs. Why are they called that? Are the males called Ladybugs too? Do they resent that?
Taking a break with diet Dr. Pepper in hand, my reliable computer experts tell me that Ladybugs got
their name from farmers in the Middle Ages who felt these beneficial beetles
were sent from heaven to eat their pests and thus called them the Beetles of the Blessed Lady. There are many species, but most are
yellow, orange, or scarlet with black spots or stripes.
We farmers and gardeners still welcome this carnivore
majority because they feed on harmful aphids or scale insects in our crops and yards. Some people even buy them by the gross and put them into their fields or landscape. A few varieties are pesky vegetarians,
however, and prefer to lunch on our plants.
Miscanthus with a bad haircut
Blogging is much more fun, but Ladybug
curiosity satisfied, I must return to the twelve other grasses awaiting their bad
haircuts. Thankfully my trusty push
mower will efficiently take care of the hundreds of clumps of liriope grass waiting out there next
week.
When the grass disappears, the new growth is seen,
and the herbs of the mountains are gathered in
Psalm 27:25
