Spiders In The GH

[hosshead]

I ACTIVELY make certain that I have spiders among the 'chids.
At this time of year, when it's move-everybody-inside time, I go looking for spiders that can "hang out" in the gh, and in the crowns of some of my humidity tray/light table specimens. I try to find varieties that tend to stay small and aren't very likely to travel, more likely to build a stable web and stay put. They have proved to be an absolute BOON in keeping down gnats in the sphagnum.

I also have a couple of the larger jumping spiders, who DO travel around...but they are pretty cool and rather beauty. One is a black one with a yellow spot on her back,(I think she is a Phippidus), the other is an Eris of some sort. Jumpers have incredible vision,(when most spiders have rather poor eyesight), and they seem to have personality that one doesn't see in "webbers".
These get around, but it's kinda cool to look over at the orchid table and see "Black Beauty" marching across the lanceanum in search of her brekkers....

I tend to keep whatever comes inside with the orchids.....prefer the spiders to the aphids and gnats and eater buggies any day.

[Cookiemonster]

Im certainly #2 and #4-- I grow indoors so anything hanging around my plants will most certainly come to hang out with me later- and Im not a fan of them.
I've been bitten bad by spiders on several ocassions and my leg became swollen and all that jazz...

I have seen some webs around my catts and Im cool with it, I know they're taking care of any buggers that I might not see or catch

[orchids3]

I think the webs are interesting. To quote one lady I know "Spiders only make webs in clean houses". I have often wondered about. I would keep all the big cat spiders I could but kill the black widows. Terantula and Daddy Long Legs are also worth having around in my opinion. Have kept terantulas as pets. Now how about snakes. Had one plant on the local TV station for a talk bout our orchid show. A snake crawled out of it and ........... But thats another subject. Maybe I should finish the incident was after the TV program but at the show. Good greenhouse ediquite would have people leave plant tags alone but after visitors visit I often have switched tags or tags taken out of pots and not put back - a lot of that stopped after the snake incident.

[dsim]

i have got these guys to take care of the "unwanted" bugs... when they grow bigger...

http://www.orchidboard.com/community...tml#post155638

[Gin]

I have renters that earn their keep, the good guys are welcome in my green house Gin

[quiltingwacko]

I go for option 2. I am curently plagued by those little gnats that get in your plants from time to time. So I have left a spider and her web in the kitchen window. She catches many of the gnats. I am treating with the usual dish soap remedy but have not applied it to the orchids. So I welcome Miss Arachnid's help. Probably horrifies my neighbor, these webs in the window. Halloween is coming.