Butterfly

Beneficial Insects

Butterflies are beautiful, graceful creatures and there are over 20,000 different species located in many parts of the world.  They also provide a very important service for the plant kingdom: pollination.  While they perch on a flower to drink the nectar...

Spiny Orb Weaver

Beneficial Insects

The Spiny orb weaver is one of many species of beneficial spider that feasts on small garden pests.  Their common name is appropriately labelled, the spider has six pointy projections located around its abdomen.  Bright coloration of the abdomen such as yellow, red,...

Dragonfly

Beneficial Insects

Dragonflies are graceful, brightly colored predatory insects with four wings and a long body.  Large ancestors of dragonflies, those with a three-foot wingspan, were on this planet longer than we can imagine.  Fossil records show that dragonflies have been here since...

Praying Mantis

Beneficial Insects

Similar to the common names of the gypsy moth and emperor scorpion, which have nothing to do with gypsies or emperors, the praying mantis (Stagmomantus sp.) has nothing to do with praying. The common name praying mantis refers to the typical “prayer-like” posture...

Discover the Secrets of Aztec Chinampas of Central America

History of Hydroponics

An example of hydroponic principles that were being used successfully is that of the Aztecs of Central America.  A nomadic tribe, they were driven onto the marshy shore of Lake Tenochtitlan,   located in the great central valley of what is now Mexico.  Roughly treated...