A gift in our garden

Back in November, while we were un-gardening, I came across something that confused me. It was a cocoon of some sort, but unlike any I had ever seen. It was hidden among the vines from our green bean plants, and I almost didn't see it.

I grabbed the section of vine, broke it off, and put it in a mason jar.

It looked almost like something a wasp might build, but just didn't make sense to be a wasp. I searched the ever-so-knowledgeable Google, but found nothing.

I finally took to social media to find the answer, posting in a group that gardens. Lucky me, it turns out it was a cocoon made by a praying mantis! People pay to get mantis eggs (cocoons) because of how beneficial they are for gardens, and here I just stumbled across one!

One egg sack can contain up to 200 babies. Being carnivorous, these are a blessing for natural pest control in the garden! (Read more about mantis benefits and facts here.)

I now have this egg sack, in the above jar, in my refrigerator. I plan on waiting until planting season (when we have plants already coming up for cover/protection) to bring it out to hatch.

Here's hoping we have a couple survive and stick around this summer!

Disclaimer: Thoughts of Fluff is responsible for all content in this post. All opinions are my own and may differ from those of your own.

Thursday Tips: Autumn/Winter Garden Tilling

This might be common knowledge for some of you, but since not everyone knows this, I thought I'd share.

After the harvest season is complete and your garden becoming barren, you might want to consider tilling. While tilling at the season's end won't loosen the soil for you to plant the following season, it can help with the the decomposition of organic materials and also weeds and insects. Tilling just before a frost, while the ground is still workable, can expose roots to perennial weeds which lessens their survival chance through the winter. The same benefit happens from exposing bug larvae to the harsher winter elements.

For more information on autumn (or winter, depending on where you live!) tilling benefits, check out this informative article. It's an older article, but still useful.

Disclaimer: Thoughts of Fluff was not compensated for this post. All opinions are my own and may differ from those of your own. Post may contain affiliate links.

Thursday Tips: Garden Veggies

Do you have a garden? Odds are, you've missed a few things at some point and had green beans get gigantic, peas start to turn brown, or squash just get so big you don't know what to do with it.

If you make your own stock, don't fret! Take those peas that started drying a bit (so long as they aren't actually rotting), the extra squash you just can't use (or don't want to because you ate half of it for dinner and it could still feed an army), extra green beans, and just throw them in a freezer bag labeled veggie scraps. I add my scraps as I go, but if you're ready to make stock today, just throw them in the pan! It will only add to your stock, and it will not have been wasted.

Thursday Tips: Used Tea & Coffee

Do you garden? Maybe you even compost? Put those used coffee grounds and tea leaves to work!

Coffee grounds are great in the soil, in compost, and in worm bins. In fact, you can even mound up some coffee grounds around a plant that slugs love and it will help keep them away since the coffee grounds are acidic and abrasive. ( Read here for more info on coffee in your garden. )

Don't forget, you can break open those k-cups and use those grounds, too!

Tea is much the same. You can use the moist tea leaves in your compost bin to speed up decomposition, or mix with soil/sprinkle on soil of acid loving plants like tomatoes. ( Read here for more info on tea leaves with different types of soil. )

We break open our tea bags, but you can also compost the tea bag depending on what it's made of.