bioagent
Nope, not a post about government conspiracies, this one's about the newest additions to the population at Barley Acres! Yesterday morning we were thrilled to welcome 200 hard-working weevils to our fields, given to us by our Regional District, just because we asked for them! Our property, like everyone else's around here, has a number of invasive species growing on it. Spotted Knapweed is one of the worrisome ones. Last year we did our best trying to pull as many plants as possible. Friends and family helped too, and we really seemed to be getting ahead of them, but this spring they came back in full force in several areas. We learned that pulling was ineffective, that the seeds can survive years in the ground, and that our efforts were better spent in other ways. Enter our new little friends Larinus minutus; their mission is to seek out and destroy the seedheads of spotted knapweed. And they don't work alone! Next month, they'll be joined by Cyphocleonus achates -- an...
