Friend or foe

There are literally millions of insects living in my gardens.   I tend to label each one as a "good" insect or a "bad" one based on their eating habits;  if they are eating my plants, they are bad!  However, sometimes the line between friend and enemy blurs.

For the first time in my memory I have deliberately left a fire ant mound to flourish in my yard.  This mound is next to my pea patch and those ants are devouring the aphids that can plague pea vines.  I barely see any aphids this year because the ants are eating them.  Of course, once the pea patch is finished for the year, the ants will have to go too.  They are still on my "bad" insect list.

Paper wasps are another of those garden "pests" that has earned a spot on the "good" list this year.  They are also busily consuming aphids on the pea vines and they are also containing the scale population that has tried to establish itself on our satsuma tree. 

Of course, both of these insect populations require a certain amount of care on my part.  When picking peas, I give the vines a little shake before I start picking to let my pest control friends know I'm there.  While I have gotten an ant bite or two, the wasps are perfectly willing to give me some space and I haven't been stung.

I don't have a problem using chemicals to control pest problems but it pleases me to let the natural cycle that God designed take care of it for me, especially on my food sources.   When God created them, I don't think he labeled the insects as friends or foes.  Each one has a place in his gardens.