On an interesting related note, Boric acid is actually the active ingredient in several commercial chemical solutions. I'm not sure how organic it qualifies as but it's a substance that occurs easily in nature so it is probably the best compromise you'll find while still trying to be true to organic gardening. It is also highly effective against many other insects.

Just be careful in using it to maintain a balance between beneficial and irritating insects. You'll need the pollinators and such later.

Oh and diatomaceous earth is awesome against soft bellied critters like slugs, snails, grubs and other soil based larvae. Mix a little into the soil and sprinkle a little on the surface around a young plant and you'll save a lot of grief from the nasty stuff crawling up and eating your plants.

I've used boric acid before, but we have raccoons and cats and squirrels in the neighborhood and I have two dogs that would make short order of any container that had food in it so I won't be using that. But thanks on the diatomaceous earth

Thanks, and let me pass that along to Chili too. She always gives good advice.

Personally I find all of the hive creatures of the order Hymenoptera fascinating. Their complex social structures and instinctive behaviors as well as their learned behaviors and ways of communicating are amazing. Nothing puts nature and the world into clearer perspective than watching a hive at work and coming to appreciate the elegant subtleties of their way of living.

The thousands of sub varieties in each of the species of ants, bees, wasps, etc and their adaptations to their niche roles in the eco systems and different body variations and food preferences are amazing as well.

The symbiotic relationships often developed by these creatures with their sources of food is both scientifically fascinating as well as morally and ethically inspirational.

Then there are the medical uses of ants, and other aspects of them in a survival situation, such as honeypot ants or using ants for emergency sutures.

Also the special ailments predators and diseases that have adapted in relation to members of this order is amazing in itself. There is even a fungus called cordyceps that affects their behaviors and makes them act completely differently than normal, basically hijacking the entire creature into a zombie that helps to spread it's spores (Shades of xcom, the xfiles, and many other tales/films/games), a fact which has lead to some very interesting studies of similar effects in other species such as humans. Of course the whole field of mycological science is quite fascinating and has great potential for addressing many environmental issues.

Hymenopterans and a lot of other insects have been a strong inspiration in a lot of the ethical, scientific and moral writings throughout history as well as being the inspiration for a lot of fiction such as SciFi and Horror. Films like "Them", Starship Troopers (which is lame compared to the book) and Aliens being good examples.

Charlton Heston made a great film which I consider a must see classic (available at most libraries): "The Naked Jungle" An owner of a coffee plantation in Brazil's jungle fights an army of warrior ants on the move covering several square miles of ground and eating everything in their path (the Marabunta). Even a non-bug interested person would have to admit the film is a masterpiece.

I strongly recomend the game, SIM Ant, by Maxis, the folks who did sim city and such. It has some excellent material in it's documentation, both the internal and the hard copy docs, and you can download it for free on the net and the manual which is worth reading by itself can be found at: www.the-underdogs.info/games/...t-m.zip

By the way, the wikipedia for ants is actually pretty good and has nice pictures of different types. In fact I would say it is wiki at it's best.

The cordyceps fungi “attack” on ants is filmed in amazing detail in slow motion on the BBC series Planet Earth. It was fascinating to watch. If you haven’t seen this incredible documentary I highly suggest it. Available on Netflix.

And if you are looking for a beneficial insect provider for ladybugs, here in Arizona you can try www.arbico-organics.com.
They are a reputable supplier (29 years in business) of these wonderful bio friends. They also have other products and they ship far and wide.