When I joined the Horticulture Enterprise team as a Co-Leader, I expected my days to be filled with plants and plant management, which was mostly true, but I did not consider at the time the extensive contribution that pest management has to our work, and how much I would actually enjoy it.
Starting off the summer, we made one of our team members’ projects come to life by planting cut flowers to harvest for bouquet workshops. The Horticulture Enterprise team mainly focuses on propagating and managing plants to be used for sales and events, and the cut flower garden fits perfectly into our goals as we hope to use the flowers in various workshops and events. At first, all was well, but as the summer came to an end, we started to notice that our zinnias were beginning to decay, with large holes taking over the plant. As we took a closer look, we discovered dozens of Japanese beetles clawing the plant, feasting on the flowers we have worked so hard to grow. We contacted our Integrated Pest Management team on how to tackle this issue, and they proposed a simple method of removing the beetles by hand and placing them in soapy water.
Removing the beetles was a hassle, but I quickly discovered that I actually enjoyed the specificity of the work and the attention to detail it required. Soon after, my co-lead and I joined the IPM team to remove more Japanese beetles around the garden, and we will hopefully continue to work with them on other related projects in the future.
Taking on these tasks that involved pest management helped me learn a lot about different insects and their interesting pasts. For example, I had a great time learning about how the Japanese Beetles were accidentally brought to the US, most likely through the import of Japanese iris bulbs. Although these beetles are destructive, they are still so interesting, which motivates me to learn more about other invasive insects in our area, such as the Asian Longhorned Beetle and the Hemlock Woolly Adelgid.
While I have never thought of myself as a bug-lover, my experience in the Learning by Leading program made me realize that bugs are not that bad, and are actually very interesting creatures. Through this program, I have reached out of my comfort zone many times, including on this occasion, and it has truly impacted my perception of myself, my bravery, and perseverance. Now with my new interest in insects, I hope to take classes in entomology and possibly pursue an entomology minor, which would have never been the case if not for the Learning by Leading program.
