Gardener’s Corner

As a polar vortex hunkers down over Minnesota, you may find yourself reaching for an extra sweater, blanket or space heater. Our plants are all tucked in for the winter or getting ready to be started from seed.

But where have all the bugs gone? Both our insect friends and foes have different strategies for surviving a Minnesota winter.

Some insects are “snowbirds” Monarch butterflies make a long migration each fall to Mexico. Just like Minnesotans who opt to spend the winter in warmer climates, some insect species choose not to spend the winter in Minnesota. The most obvious example of this is the monarch butterfly, which flies thousands of miles to Mexico each fall. There are also pests with a similar cold weather strategy.

Some vegetable insect pests can't survive a Minnesota winter and instead spend most of the year in warmer climates. They come to Minnesota on weather fronts in the spring and summer, and the winter will wipe out any of the past year’s arrivals. Pests with this type of biology include black cutworm (nocturnal feeding caterpillar that snips seedlings), spotted cucumber beetle and corn earworm/tomato fruitworm (a pest of so many crops entomologists can’t agree on a name!).

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