The more buzzing and droning around her, the happier Grandma Trude is. Because she knows that without insects, our species would be in hot water. Fortunately, we can all do a thing or two to protect the useful little critters.
My Dears,Did you get plenty of sunshine in July? I hope so for your sake! Here in Germany we had horrendous floods in North Rhine-Westphalia and Rhineland-Palatinate as well as in the south of Germany. For which climate change is largely to blame! The tragic toll on people’s lives there makes me awfully sad. The EU aims to be climate-neutral by 2050, but time and again we see how hard it is to get there. So it’s all the more important for every one of us to do our bit.
We can do something for insects, for example, seeing as they’re vital to the preservation of whole ecosystems and to our well-being, even our survival. There are an estimated 1.4 billion insects for every person on the planet. And four to six million different species of insects! Some folks find bugs disgusting, but you don't have to engage directly with the little critters to help them out. And if you want to keep them away, use a homemade chemical-free spray. I’ll tell you how a little later…
The world needs bugs
What’s so important about insects? Well, that’s an easy one: because the world's food supply depends on insect pollination. Not only that, but insects break down dead plants and animals, thereby improving the quality of the soil. And they’re a key link in the food chain. Birds, amphibians, even hedgehogs and badgers feed on bugs. But so do people in over 130 countries around the world. Insects are nutritious – and good for staving off hunger when there’s nothing else to eat. While some insects do threaten crops and food supplies, the benefits bugs have to offer far outweigh their downsides.Busy bees
“Ohne Bienen kein Leben,” as we say in German: “No life without bees.” That may sound like an exaggeration, but considering that about eighty percent of all native flowering plants are pollinated and thereby propagated by honey bees and wild bees, it really isn’t. Without them, there’d be fewer fruit trees in the world, their fruits would be smaller and not as wholesome. So the busy bees are working hard to put food on our table! Isn't that a marvellous way of looking at it? But they need food themselves – and habitats, which we’re increasingly encroaching on and destroying. Flattened-out, over-fertilized fields contaminated with insecticides are one part of the problem; shrinking biodiversity in the countryside is another. But various projects have been started up to stave off this recipe for disaster. My friend Inge got me to support the Augsburg Bee Pasture. Now we’re both “bee sponsors”, making small donations to help ward off what’s known as the Great Insect Die-Off and the resulting loss of biodiversity.My mini-menagerie
I let insects frolic in my garden because I really like it when they’re bustling and buzzing all over the place. I often sit on the stoop between my terrace and garden and watch what's going on beside me. It's just unbelievable, sometimes more exciting than a thriller on TV! Or it makes me contemplative. I watch the goings-on with my great-grandchildren, too – so they’ll learn not to be afraid of insects. Little David brings his magnifying glass so we can get a closer look at lots of colourful six-legged beasties. He loves it just as much as I do. So a few years ago, to make sure there’s plenty of action to behold there, I planted a mix of seeds including grasses, herbs and flowers, which bloom there all summer long, enticing insects with their scent. You can find seed mixtures at any garden centre and, of course, on the web.Create a winter habitat
If you let the grass grow till spring, it might not look great, but it’s an important habitat for insects to winter and reproduce in. Wild bees and butterflies, for instance, lay their eggs in the broader hollow stems, and the larvae spend the winter there in the pupa stage. You can forgo a well-groomed garden for such a good cause, don’t you think?Stepping stones on the balcony
Queen Anne’s lace, the archetype of our cultivated carrot, is my current favourite because it lends itself to observing beetles and other bugs so well. Poppies, daisies, bugloss (aka oxtongue), bellflowers, wild sage, knapweed and rattle also grow in my garden. I’m so proud of this cornucopia of wildflowers!But you can also create a little biotope of bug-friendly flowers on your balcony. NB: Insects can only get to the vital pollen if the flowers are unfilled. You’ll be providing an important “stepping stone”, i.e. a habitat for insects or birds where they can put in a stop whilst foraging for food before flying off to the next stepping stone… and the next... Putting a park in the middle of a big city simply isn’t enough: insects are on the move and need plenty of stops along the way. Isn't that exciting?
Quit bugging me!
But what if the bugs are pestering you in summer, at a campsite, by the lake or at a convivial picnic with friends? What then? Killing them should only be a last resort. There are a few things you can do to prevent this situation in the first place – apart from picking up some insect repellent at your local pharmacy.What’s wrong with buying bug spray? Well, most of the products on the market are pretty pricey and cause a lot of plastic waste. Besides, the spray causes collateral damage to other insects besides mosquitoes. So my advice is: mix it yourself!
Here’s a quick recipe for 100 ml of mosquito spray:
- 4 tablespoons at least 40% ethanol (aka ethyl alcohol or wine spirit) (pharmacy or Internet)
- 10 drops of 2 or 3 essential oils e.g. citronella, lemongrass, rose geranium, peppermint, tea tree, eucalyptus or lavender (though citronella alone will also suffice)
- 70 ml boiled water
Using witch hazel water instead of alcohol is a bit kinder on your skin, more pleasant and nurturing, especially for sun-stressed skin. So:
- 120 ml witch hazel water
- Add approx. 15 drops of 2 to 4 different essential oils.
What else works?
Certain plants: Many of my plants just happen to repel mosquitoes – I didn’t plan it that way, but naturally that's great! I’ve got some catnip, which keeps mosquitoes away and attracts bees, a huge rosemary bush, lemon balm, basil, some tomato plants and lavender. And they’re all on my terrace, where no mosquitos ever venture. To play it safe when, say, you have visitors, roast a few sprigs of rosemary carefully over a lantern: mosquitoes don’t like the essential oils. The aroma also drives off wasps and hornets – insects which are, by the way, worth protecting.So I hope I’ve gone some way towards convincing you today that our real problem isn’t mosquitoes, it’s the extinction of insects and the grave threat to biodiversity that entails.
Have a wonderful summer!
Your Trude
July 2021