Declaring war on flying bugs - with lizards

[WhiteRabbit]

Originally Posted by utah

If you want to keep the humidity at around 70% (or higher) in your house, hey, go for it! House geckos (I have a small one in the greenhouse too) are a lot less demanding when it comes to humidity and eat a bigger range of insects (hence the name, house gecko - many people just let them run around their houses to kill off insects and spiders).


If I didn't have three dogs and a cat in the house I'd consider letting a few geckos run around but I don't want to find portions of them left on my pillow as gifts from the dogs (which they do with insects).

hmmm
do have a dog and a cat - be more worried bout the cat - tho have a couple of times found small lizards in my house- I caught them and put them outside - maybe I shoulda left them in the house huh?

[utah]

Hey, I'm a "more the merrier" type of person when it comes to animals (within limits). Lizards are very fast and most like to hang out on the walls and up high so the cat may not be able to get them.

Give them a big potted plant to climb on and you'll be fine. Now, when it comes to feeding them, might want to consider if you want crickets in your house (you can put them in a glass bowl which the lizards can crawl in and out of but the crickets can't jump out of).

Hey, go for it.

[Junebug]

Hi Utah,

It sounds like your doing a great job of using nature as a natural pesticide. Do any tree frogs live in your neck of the woods? We have an abundance of them in Florida and they do a killer job on snails, roaches, mosquitos, and other flying insects.

Without intent, I established a small frog breeding station near my front door in the form of a small, poorly drained metal planter hanging on the wall. There are a couple of individually potted philodendrons that I stationed in the metal planter and every few days the plants get spritzed with water from a hose. The metal planter with debris in the bottom holds a reservoir of water to the depth of about 5".

At nightfall, a few weeks after installing the planter, I began hearing thumps on a nearby window and discovered the noise was coming from hungry frogs landing on the glass panes. Shortly thereafter, while in the process of spritzing my plants I noticed a few pair of eyes staring back at me between the leaves of the plant. One day curiosity got the best of me so I climbed on a chair, removed the potted Phils, and looked down into the planter. This is what I saw.

Insects thrive in our environment and Florida residents would benefit by encouraging the population of frogs and lizards. They do a fantastic job of keeping the bugs in check.

June

[Joansorchid]

Boo! Hoo!
Be careful if you spray. I sprayed my ontodontioda with insect spray and it looks almost dead the same as a miltassia that I sprayed along with it. Just hoping that they might pull through. But one has lost all of its leaves and the other ones look rotten and just snap when you touch them. Oh well. We live and learn!
Hugs Joan

[utah]

Originally Posted by Junebug

Hi Utah,

It sounds like your doing a great job of using nature as a natural pesticide. Do any tree frogs live in your neck of the woods? We have an abundance of them in Florida and they do a killer job on snails, roaches, mosquitos, and other flying insects.

Without intent, I established a small frog breeding station near my front door in the form of a small, poorly drained metal planter hanging on the wall. There are a couple of individually potted philodendrons that I stationed in the metal planter and every few days the plants get spritzed with water from a hose. The metal planter with debris in the bottom holds a reservoir of water to the depth of about 5".

At nightfall, a few weeks after installing the planter, I began hearing thumps on a nearby window and discovered the noise was coming from hungry frogs landing on the glass panes. Shortly thereafter, while in the process of spritzing my plants I noticed a few pair of eyes staring back at me between the leaves of the plant. One day curiosity got the best of me so I climbed on a chair, removed the potted Phils, and looked down into the planter. This is what I saw.

Insects thrive in our environment and Florida residents would benefit by encouraging the population of frogs and lizards. They do a fantastic job of keeping the bugs in check.

June

Those frogs are just too cool! We don't have tree frogs here but I'm going to get some from the pet store next payday - I'm just hoping that all of the critters pretty much stay inside the greenhouse this summer when I have the doors opened up more. I really don't want them getting loose in the yard then ending up dachshund food or freezing to death next winter.

[WhiteRabbit]

Originally Posted by Junebug

Hi Utah,

It sounds like your doing a great job of using nature as a natural pesticide. Do any tree frogs live in your neck of the woods? We have an abundance of them in Florida and they do a killer job on snails, roaches, mosquitos, and other flying insects.

Without intent, I established a small frog breeding station near my front door in the form of a small, poorly drained metal planter hanging on the wall. There are a couple of individually potted philodendrons that I stationed in the metal planter and every few days the plants get spritzed with water from a hose. The metal planter with debris in the bottom holds a reservoir of water to the depth of about 5".

At nightfall, a few weeks after installing the planter, I began hearing thumps on a nearby window and discovered the noise was coming from hungry frogs landing on the glass panes. Shortly thereafter, while in the process of spritzing my plants I noticed a few pair of eyes staring back at me between the leaves of the plant. One day curiosity got the best of me so I climbed on a chair, removed the potted Phils, and looked down into the planter. This is what I saw.

Insects thrive in our environment and Florida residents would benefit by encouraging the population of frogs and lizards. They do a fantastic job of keeping the bugs in check.

June

omg! what cuties! I love those little tree frogs! occassionally I find them in the 'outer' pots I have cyms in and in the flower bed!
thats awesome they like your greenhouse!

[quiltingwacko]

For my houseplants I have used 1 half tsp of Ivory dishwashing liquid to a quart of water. Used it to water the plants. Usually doesn't take more than one or two waterings and there is a big drop in population of gnats. It would be fun to have lizards running around the windows but bet the Airedale and the Maltese would make short work of them. I did try the soap mixture on my orchids last summer. It worked. None are dead yet but as to how good it is for them, I do not know. Carol

[utah]

Okay, I broke down and got the tree frogs. Here's a couple of pictures of some of them. There's four in all and they are a *pain* to photograph. They are the "night shift". The anoles are out in the daytime and the frogs come out at sunset. They love to hide during the day and I've managed to find a few when they are sleeping (they are easier to find at night when they are awake but difficult to photograph).

One likes the hollow cork tube (as you can see in the photo) and some of them love to sleep in the electrical boxes. They only spend a night or two in the same spot then move on to a different hiding place. The dustpan was a great hiding spot for one of the green ones for a few days but it's since moved on. (I think it's hanging around the vandas now).

It's been fun with the lizards and tree frogs out there to keep the orchids company this winter!

[WhiteRabbit]

OMG that's awesome! I love frogs!
And good for you for your 'natural' pest control efforts!

[mojomick]

Utah, I went to the pet store as well. Got a tree frog, which was lime green and cute. I saw him once since I put him in the gh. Haven't been able to find him since. Am still looking. Betty