Landscaping decor

Garden Fountain

Missing the sound of running water from a stream in your backyard. Don’t have enough room for a little stream, try a garden fountain. You can buy a kit or make your own.

Old sprinkling can with water flowing into a wash basin
Old sprinkling can with water flowing into a wash basin


All you need is a basin to hold water that sits on the surface or level to the ground level. Use a waterproof basin that holds at least a couple of feet of water. That way you will not have to fill it up as often compared to a small depth. A water screen around the pump will protect the pump from debris like dead leaves and algae.

Water flowing from hand pump to wine barrel
Water flowing from hand pump to wine barrel


Get a fountain pump that can be placed in the water. They are measured as a gallon per hour or the height of the water being pumped. Do not get too small of one that will not push the water to the desired height.

Water flowing into multiple basins
Water flowing into multiple basins


You can use plastic tubing or copper pipe to get the water from the pump to where you want the water to come out. Use plants and rock to decorate.
I like the fountains that provide running water over the ones that produce a fine spray. The wind takes the spray and will drain your water basin in a hurry.

A fountain of teapot and tea cups
A fountain of teapot and tea cups
Garden Pests

Fall Webworms

What is that big bunches of webs in my trees? It is fall webworms hatching from eggs and spinning a protection web over the colony. While unsightly, they do not cause much harm this time of the year as the trees are going dormant.

Webbing on a fruit tree from fall webworms
Webbing from fall webworms

Their “cousins”, the spring tent caterpillars do cause damage because they hatch in the spring when the trees are trying to grow. These should be controlled.

Both species attacking fruit trees, poplars, and a few others. They fall out of the nests seeking shelter and become brown moths in the spring laying eggs completing the life cycle.

Back the fall, if you can not stand the sight of these, you can rip the nest with a stick exposing the worms to the elements and birds. I have not noticed an overabundance of webs this year.

House pests

Flies in the House

Flies and more flies in the house, I am getting sick of it! They say find the source and remove it, the source is the farm!

So I need to kill them in the house. The best method I have found is the sticky yellow tubes that you can hang. Just do not bump them with your head. You can get fly trap jugs, I found them to be very stinky. I use a milk jug with apple cider vinegar or a little fruit in water and honey.

There are fly bait stations where you place bait in special containers outside, but be careful of the actual baits around pets or humans for they are very poisonous.

Then spray a residual insecticide around the outside of window and doors and other entry points of the house. Make sure your window screens are not torn or have holes.

There is a “newer” innovation called a fly light trap. It is a fly zapper using UV light for indoor areas. You can always get your cardio workout with the flyswatter!

Fly sticky tube
Fly sticky tube

These sticky fly tubes work about the best inside of my home. I place them by windows up high enough where you will not get caught on them (or the dogs). I do not like to use insecticide sprays indoors or the flycatcher jugs which have a bad odor to them.