Garden season retrospective. Part 6 of N... bugs and fish

Bugs... it's kind of how it started... we have got grasshoppers galore eating my vegetables...
so I've got chickens to take care of that problem :)
after that chickens proceeded to eat vegetables in the garden and more than hoppers so they were booted :).
But bugs did not go no where, there are ones I like... praying mantice is one of those, I do not mind spider much either as long as they keep to themselves, however I do not like brown recluse and black widow at all, they not used to overwinter up here, now it turns out they can.
There are birds to take care of some bugs, and there are none to take care of others (pine tip moth not native to the area would be one of those).
At times bugs multiply, good ones. And that's how they become listed in the bad cathegory.

So roly-poly talk. The are looked at like bugs, well technically they are not, they are this: Armadillidiidae  Aka pillbugs.

Roly poly, wood louse, armadillo bug, potato bug

Well they are crustaceans all right :).

They considered to be composting dwellers and feeding on mulch and stuff, rottin decay lovers, right?

Also these will clean stuff, and well, including bad stuff. Like heavy metals removal, arsenic, led etc.

Well, if there are lots of them and not enough feed they will eat something else.

How the heck to I know? By experience. One year there was shortage of woodchips, so I did not load fresh ones in the garden. In a bit I wondered where the heck did my cucumbers seedlings go... there were more of those. I started looking for 'the bug'

I wouldn’t mind pillbugs so much if they confined themselves to feeding on mulch.  But when numerous as they are right now, pillbugs are not shy about feeding on roots and tender stems of garden flowers and vegetables. Also when plants are mature pillbugs will not do that much damage, however if there are lots of them they are totally capable eating potato plants, quite effective actually, comparable to infamous Colorado bugs.

so what does pillbug aka roly-poly like... nice soft juicy... pillbugs do dry fast and like mois environment, the same they seek in the food -water sources,

Beer traps work, also good old yeast+old preserve/jelly works, makes cheap bad beer, fill that in roly-roly galore, and they decompose well.

 However if you are after the life ones for whatever reason, here is what you do
Watermelon step one in evening

 Pick up early in morning, say 6am or so, tada, tank load, dump into the bucket

 and soil under, scoop that into the same bucket

 Here is same next to mature tomato

 Place the trap back. Lasts for a week in arit 10% humidity scorchin summer heat

 The harvest

And to the chickens that goes, nice protein.
You can dry those for winter.
Did you see the cost of those mill worms? Right, these are free and chickens eat them. Well they do like earth worms better.
Cleaned up by chickens dirt can be returned to garden.
I kind of went to harvesting bugs versus setting chickens on garden in full speed.... because chickens were way too interested in vegetables.

Now chickens are looking for ways to get into the gardens, oh... they KNOW all right.

They are looking for ways to get over the cattle fence


I'm a chicken hawk! What...

Other ways of fertilizing... aside of setting chickens to clean/poop do chickeny things...

Behold carpa. It's considered a pest fish in our lakes and rivers, folk go bow fishing and give away pounds of that fish.
Go plant that fish guts and all, well cut up first next to your tomatoes or what have you and your plants will thank you,.... like a lot :)

Also will your chickens...

Carpa ala shovel recipe
Get free carp, make bonfire, place said carp on coals... guts, scales and all

 Turn when they get ugly... my chickens would not eat that carp raw

 But cooked... yep

 Carpa ala shovel

Walk away... in a bit there will be just bones :). they eat it all.


And that is what can happen to your carrots if you plant fish next to them, you've being warned :)

Fair disclose if you have trees and wild life, plant deep, otherwise coyote or fox or what else will come, dig that up, make a mess.
And if you have some nice logs to place on the site where that fish was planted put that there, in 2-3 weeks no one except of dirt dwellers is interested in that... however some extra curious dog might be :)


Plants like fish food. And I like free fish. Chickens are not vegans either...
They will catch mice and stuff
And no chickens do not play with their food like cats do, they go straight to the business, here is video link for you, there are many re-posts of this video on youtube, looks like it's gone popular :)