Oil that is, black gold, Texas tea.
Hello, again! Who remembers watching The Beverly Hillbillies on black and white TVs back in the day? The show ran from 1962 to 1971 and became one of the most-watched TV shows of its era. The story of Jed Clampett and his kin is a humorous reflection on the clash between rural values and urban sophistication. Jed, a poor mountaineer living in the Ozarks, is a widower raising his tomboy daughter Elly May with the help of his feisty mother-in-law Granny, and his knucklehead, but well-meaning nephew Jethro Bodine.
One day, while out hunting, Jed shoots at a critter and strikes oil. The ground starts bubbling, and it turns out he’s sitting on a massive oil reserve. A nearby oil company buys the rights to drill, and Jed suddenly becomes a multi-millionaire.
Jed moves his family to Beverly Hills, California, so they can live in style and enjoy their fortune. They buy a mansion, but despite their wealth, they stay true to their simple, country ways.
The story of Jed Clampett discovering oil in such an unusual way reminds me of how one of our most effective and safe insecticides was discovered. We approach bagworm season as our temperatures warm, so it's a good time to learn about this interesting discovery. (Keep a close eye out - bagworms are tiny and don't have bags when they emerge!)
Spinosad was discovered in the early 1980s. The discovery happened during a natural soil sample screening of Caribbean soil from an abandoned rum distillery. The distillery was located on the island of St. Thomas in the U.S. Virgin Islands. Spinosyn A and spinosyn D were extracted from the soil and found to target the nervous system of many insects, causing paralysis and death in these pests. It’s effective, yet relatively safe for beneficial insects and mammals when used as directed. The discovery was significant because it marked a new class of insecticides with a natural origin, low environmental impact, and unique mode of action, making it useful for both conventional and organic agriculture.
ferti-lome Green Spinosad is labeled for use in the vegetable garden, lawn and landscape. Spinosad controls ants, aphids, armyworms, beetles (including Colorado potato and Japanese beetle), borers, caterpillars, chinch bugs, codling moth, earwigs, fruit flies, gypsy moth, lace bugs, leafhoppers, leafminers, leafrollers, loopers, mealybugs, mites, mole crickets, plant bugs, psyllids, sawfly larvae, scale insects, spider mites, tent caterpillars, thrips, webworms, weevils, whiteflies and other chewing insects. Apply in the late evening or early morning before bees are active. OMRI listed for organic use.
We have our ‘What’s Bugging You’ displays set up in the stores and are ready to help you identify and deal with pests in the lawn and garden, whether insects, fungi or weeds.
With the cooler temperatures and moisture we have received, it’s still a perfect time to plant not only annuals and perennials, but trees and shrubs as well. I am just finishing up planting my tomatoes, peppers and other summer vegetables!
In case you forgot, here’s the iconic theme song to The Beverly Hillbillies, titled The Ballad of Jed Clampett, performed by Lester Flatt and Earl Scruggs.
Your friend in the garden,
Marty Johnson
Owner - Johnson's Garden Centers
