Tereza Okava

Dang R, that owl is just gorgeous. You're clearly putting in a lot of time, the results are excellent!

after this thread, maybe the plant heard me threatening it, and i saw a few flowers. it still looks like charlie brown's lemon tree, but if it gives me some lemons i won't complain anymore.

cute pic. obviously you'd turn the pole so the rope goes through the notch. with bamboo it's really easy, but i've seen people do it with boards too.

and yes for picking fruit: snag the stems with that notch, give a twist, and down comes the orange. even better with things like tangerines or rangpur limes where the branches are covered with spikes and nobody's climbing that tree!!

Yaaaaaaay!!!
It's been a mild winter, and summer is already here before spring even started, but I am thrilled.
(there's even talk about maybe bringing back daylight savings time, which was cancelled a few years ago, a terrible mistake in many people's opinions....)

Alna, something else I just thought of.
Not sure where you are, but talking about sagging lines- here folks often just use what they have/find/scrounge (good amount of clotheslines here made from fiber optic cable, for example: poles get knocked down, there's no metal in the cable, ends up on the side of the road, someone grabs it).
No matter what lines they are, they eventually get saggy. Here it's super common to find a fixed line with a pole near the line. Usually a long piece of bamboo, notched at the top.* As tall as the line can go from its fixed points. When you're putting the clothes out, save a space in the center of the line, and when you're done loading the (now very saggy) line put the rope in that notch, stand the pole up, and bob's your uncle. The pole moves with the wind and keeps the clothes high. If you're on top of a slippery surface the pole might occasionally slip out from the bottom, but I had a paved back patio and saw that happen maybe twice in the three years I lived there.

*we used this same notched bamboo pole as my fruit picking pole- good for snagging stems with that notch, giving a twist, and down comes the orange.

Funny you say this. I live in an area that was mined for sand-- they took the sand and left the layers of clay between. Thick orange clay (think Georgia).
This clay grows great brassicas and beans and corn. But I have put in a number of citrus trees and have one in particular that just isn't happy. I dug a big hole, big pile of compost in the hole, constantly topdressing with rabbit manure, compost, etc, and it is still miserable. I had it in a pot for years and it gave me rangpur limes, lots of them, for about 5 years. Put it in the ground thinking it would be happy and voilá, not a flower since, grows almost nothing, looks like the sickest thing you've ever seen.

I have another one that went into the same ground after years in a pot, but somehow it ended up with some roots exposed (I didn't do anything purposefully for this to happen, it wasn't like this when it was in the pot). It isn't tall, and often gets attacked by aphids, but it puts out blood oranges and at least seems to be trying. May just be coincidence, but the difference is remarkable.

"Flies
Bees
Wasps
Ants
Grasshoppers
Beetles
Butterflies
Moths
Spiders"

Green lynx spiders are not known to specifically target ticks, but they will eat them if they come across them. Ticks are relatively slow-moving creatures, which makes them easy prey for green lynx spiders.

tips:
Plant a variety of flowers and shrubs. Green lynx spiders are attracted to colorful flowers and shrubs because they provide a good habitat for their prey.
Keep your yard clean and free of debris; they like to live in open areas where they can easily see their prey.
Provide a water source.

ah, and the answer to the BIG QUESTION:

The number of spiderlings that emerge from a green lynx spider egg sac varies depending on the species, but it is typically around 200. The mother green lynx spider is a dedicated mother and will guard her egg sac and spiderlings until they are old enough to fend for themselves.

The mother green lynx spider will typically stay with her egg sac for about 2-3 weeks after the spiderlings have emerged. She will protect them from predators and help them to learn how to hunt and survive. Once the spiderlings are old enough, they will disperse and start their own lives.

Here are some of the ways that the mother green lynx spider protects her egg sac and spiderlings:

She will wrap them in a protective silk cocoon.
She will guard them aggressively, chasing away any predators.
She will help them to emerge from the egg sac and teach them how to hunt and survive.
The mother green lynx spider is an example of a spider that exhibits maternal care. This is a relatively rare behavior in spiders, but it is seen in a few different families, including the lynx spiders. Maternal care is thought to have evolved in spiders as a way to increase the survival rate of their offspring.

By protecting her egg sac and spiderlings, the mother green lynx spider helps to ensure that the next generation of green lynx spiders can thrive.

For a confessed arachnophobe i have to say this thread is astonishingly awesome. I'm so excited!!!

I decided to do a little sleuthing for you and found just some basic info online


Yes, there is some information specifically about egg sac rotation in green lynx spiders. For example, a study published in the journal Arachnology in 2010 found that green lynx spiders rotate their egg sacs at a rate of about 12 times per hour. The study also found that the spiders tend to rotate their egg sacs more frequently at higher temperatures.

Another study, published in the journal Journal of Arachnology in 2013, found that green lynx spiders rotate their egg sacs in a clockwise direction. The study also found that the spiders rotate their egg sacs more frequently when there is a predator present.

Scientists believe that green lynx spiders rotate their egg sacs for a variety of reasons, including:

To prevent mold and mildew growth.
To protect the eggs from predators.
To regulate temperature and humidity.
To distribute the eggs evenly.
To communicate with the spiderlings inside.
However, more research is needed to fully understand why green lynx spiders rotate their egg sacs and the specific benefits that this behavior provides.

It is interesting to note that green lynx spiders are one of the few spider species that do not build webs to catch their prey. Instead, they are ambush predators that stalk and pounce on their prey. This unique hunting strategy may have contributed to the evolution of egg sac rotation in green lynx spiders, as it allows them to protect their eggs from predators while they are out hunting.

Further reading:
Egg sac rotation in the green lynx spider Oxyopes salticus: A study published in the journal Arachnology in 2010.
The effect of predation risk on egg sac rotation in the green lynx spider Oxyopes salticus: A study published in the journal Journal of Arachnology in 2013.
The Biology of Spiders by Rainer Foelix (2011)
Invertebrate Medicine by Gregory A. Lewbart (2017)

Judith, if you have anything you want me to look up specifically, let me know. I research for a living, I have a resident biologist here, and I have more data available than I know what to do with.

eep, rancid i think is one of these no-return things, but i'm also a big fan of experimentation.... if it's still rancid, i think you'll know immediately, there's only one way to find out!

my chips are in the freezer because the only way i can get corn chips or tortillas is raw, from a factory that makes them and sells them to the two local restaurants here, to be fried when needed. so mine are not actually cooked-- they are the raw masa that is rolled and then i cook them when i want them. In this case i will probably throw a bunch of them in the air fryer. Not great for snacking, but not deep fried (which i save for very special occasions) and good enough for salad with some nice homemade pico de gallo......