Transcript
Plant People: What up, peeps? It's the brunette horticulture gals coming back at you.
Jessica : Hello.
Plant People: You know, your favorite podcasts.
Jessica : all All girl show girl power again.
Plant People: Very true. Very true. Just what what would Brett say if he was right now? He'd call us queens. That's his thing.
Jessica : Yes, you'd say Queens and something witty.
Plant People: He likes to call people queens. Yeah, you know, we're not quite as witty as Brett, but we do have more hair, and I hope he hears this. So... Just kidding. We love you, Brett. Anyways, hey guys. How's everybody doing? Jessica, how are you? What's up with you?
Jessica : I'm good. I'm good. It has been like the big rush of spring and kind of summer.
Plant People: Yeah.
Jessica : i don't know.
Plant People: Yeah.
Jessica : ah But other, what is the weather?
Plant People: Right? Like, what is the weather? Yeah.
Jessica : It's now we've gone from being like summer in the spring to now it's like chilly.
Plant People: Mm-hmm. Mm-hmm. To spring...
Jessica : But it's actually like, it's kind of like lovely. It's very lovely to like go out and take a walk and it's like kind of chilly still, but
Plant People: But it's going hot. And so we're probably, by the time you're listening to this, it's it's hot.
Jessica : It's going to get hot. um We're going to be melting.
Plant People: And you're like, what is this chili? I'm not ready. Listen, the acclimation, like, I need a period of time to be acclimated. And we aren't going to get it because we never do.
Plant People: We never have a slow transition. And I am not excited.
Jessica : i yeah My middle son
Plant People: i just, my body does not function.
Jessica : My middle son is not going to do well. He's already experienced it once. He, he, we already had a period of where it was like cool. And then it got really hot one weekend and he just like, he was like, I'm so hot.
Jessica : And he was like sweating and he had shorts and t-shirt on. And of course no shoes or socks.
Plant People: Bless it.
Jessica : Cause he never has shoes or socks on.
Plant People: Well, no, that's just more hot stuff.
Jessica : And, uh, and I was like, it's going to be a long summer for him because he's just like, I'm so hot.
Plant People: Yeah. I was thinking about that. ah Yeah, I was hot.
Jessica : Cause he,
Plant People: Yeah, you're poor.
Jessica : He doesn't like wear coats when it's cold because he's he just trucking right along.
Plant People: He's,
Plant People: he's a big old boy. He's a big old boy.
Jessica : Yeah.
Plant People: He's got plenty of plenty to keep him warm.
Jessica : Yeah.
Plant People: Big big Benny boy.
Jessica : hmm.
Plant People: I can't wait till he gets to high school. I can't wait for like what they, what they call him like in a positive way, like not in to make funny, fun way, but they're he's going to be like big Benny boy. Like they're going to, they're calling him big Ben or something.
Jessica : Yeah. Yeah. he
Plant People: i don't know.
Jessica : yeah, for him to be such like a tall, larger toddler for a three-year-old, he has started saying things like now that he's just a little kid and that he doesn't want to grow up because he just wants to stay little, which is ironic because he's like a foot taller than anyone else's age. His older brother told him the other night, looked at him dead serious and was like, yeah, I don't, he's like, i don't want to grow up either, but I have to. and then like rolled over and went to sleep.
Jessica : ah
Plant People: This ah elder child that you have, he is he is primo firstborn.
Jessica : He is
Plant People: It does not get more stereotypical than that.
Jessica : Right.
Plant People: And we can say that because we're both firstborn. So we know.
Jessica : are Rose Firstborns, so we know we can relate.
Plant People: We're like, we see it. We so we are ah we are there with you. We channel that. Well, well ah it talking about your boys is perfect and segues perfectly into what we're talking about today, which is ah some so some nature danger, as you like to call it.
Jessica : Yeah.
Jessica : Nature Danger, because it kind of ties in with like coming up soon. i will be doing programming with what ages are they? They're sixth graders, I think. ah All of them in our county.
Jessica : And we do a safety day where they're going to be learning.
Plant People: That's an interesting age.
Jessica : and Yeah, a very interesting age. Right. But I've discovered this topic will actually keep their attention. because they get really intense about it. um But they'll be learning about all sorts of safety things like ATV safety, all of that. And I have to compare, you know, compete with those other stations by doing um dangerous plants, insects, and snakes. Oh my, or nature danger.
Jessica : So it's,
Plant People: I mean, how could you not pay attention to that?
Jessica : Right. So we just, you know, this kind of ties in with the time of year because we're all spending a lot more time outside.
Plant People: Yeah.
Jessica : ah and We have already talked a lot before we said we need to start recording about ticks.
Plant People: Tell me about it. Yeah.
Jessica : We will talk about ticks. We will get to those. ah But something I'd like to start off with, Alexis, when I talk to kids about these topics ah is what is the difference between something being poisonous and something being venomous?
Plant People: Are you asking me? Because I think I know.
Jessica : Yeah, I'm asking you.
Plant People: okay So venomous is usually a bite, right?
Jessica : Do you know?
Jessica : Mm-hmm. huh
Plant People: It's injected and poison is on a surface. So like the poisonous frog, if you touch the frog and then put your fingers in your mouth, it's poisonous.
Jessica : Right.
Plant People: Is that close?
Jessica : So we talk about, yeah, poisonous, it's something that's ingested.
Plant People: Ingested.
Jessica : It's something that absorbed through your skin.
Plant People: Mm-hmm.
Jessica : You breathe it in.
Plant People: Mm-hmm.
Jessica : So we're thinking about like our plants, our fungi, they're poisonous versus, you know, venomous is something that's going to bite you or sting you. Toxins are injected. So those are snakes or insects.
Jessica : So the nerd in me, I have to keep it under control when people talk about, hey, watch out, that bee is poisonous. The bee is going to put the poison in you. Or the watch out, a black widow is poisonous.
Plant People: No.
Jessica : And I'll sometimes be sassy at some children and be like, are you eating one? that how it's poisonous? Only only when they're really rowdy, right, to get their attention.
Plant People: They've been talking the whole time. you're like You've learned nothing.
Jessica : whole time you've learned nothing child um yeah but i guess like starting off with plants though because you know we more of a plant show um the ones that i think about that we encounter all the time and uh is poison ivy it is everywhere
Plant People: I swear it's, like, even more everywhere this year. Again, I'm one of those people who probably says this every single year about everything. It's hotter than it was last year.
Jessica : Is it? Wait, is it?
Plant People: There's...
Jessica : Is that because we're getting old? Are we old now?
Plant People: i think I think that's what this is.
Jessica : Is that why?
Plant People: It's like, maybe, no, it's not that we're getting old, it's that we're getting wise. We've had enough summers under our belt to know that this is not normal, okay?
Jessica : okay
Jessica : Yes.
Plant People: But literally, I feel like I have poison ivy everywhere, and we walked the dogs the other day, and it's all along the roadside.
Jessica : Yes, that's what it is.
Plant People: I was like, how, what, what? It's everywhere.
Jessica : right. Luckily with poison ivy, we you know, a popular saying that goes along with it is three leaves, let it be. So if you're ever in doubt that you may be looking at poison ivy, if you see a plant that has three leaves together, just don't touch it.
Plant People: Mm-hmm. Mm-hmm.
Plant People: Just, yeah.
Jessica : Just avoid walking it. Because it could be like box elder often gets confused for it.
Plant People: Mm-hmm.
Jessica : um It looks very similar.
Plant People: Yeah.
Jessica : ah But, you know, it's a deciduous ah woody vine. So a lot of times they're kind of creepy looking when they grow up on the sides of trees and they have all those.
Plant People: Mm-hmm.
Jessica : It's a very hairy looking, um the roots that come off of it.
Plant People: Mm-hmm. Yeah, that roots...
Jessica : Yeah. All parts of the plant are poisonous from the leaves, the stems. um It has a very, it has a very light color oil that's emitted from it that we get on our skins. And some people um are highly allergic to it. My, have my, one of my younger brothers, if he gets into it, he knows that he will eventually be going to get a steroid shot.
Jessica : Yeah.
Plant People: Yeah, my dad's that way.
Jessica : they get so bad um other people like my father-in-law who's been on the show i will tell a story about him that's quite funny when he was a child he built a fort and all of his little buddies came over and played and then suddenly his buddies weren't allowed to come back and play with him anymore and that's because he built his fort out of poison ivy um he is not allergic to it but all the other kids on the street yeah um
Plant People: My husband isn't either. So lucky.
Jessica : Other people don't have a reaction unless it gets into their cuts or if they have little small cuts.
Plant People: Mm-hmm.
Jessica : My husband can get in it and it doesn't bother him. But if he has any like little small cuts where he's been pulling, you know, a branch might have rubbed up against him or something, then he will have a reaction from it.
Plant People: Mm-hmm. The oil gets in there.
Jessica : um But yeah, the best.
Plant People: And one, let me share this because I have seen this go around, you know, your poisonous versus venomous.
Jessica : Yeah.
Plant People: Poison ivy cannot be spread from person to person, correct? Like unless you are spreading the actual oil, like I touch poison ivy, I have the oil on me, I rub that oil on somebody else.
Jessica : That's right.
Plant People: But like if it's, you know, you've washed and you just have a rash, you can't spread it because that oil is gone.
Jessica : Yeah, that's that's really good to mention.
Plant People: And I think some people get worried.
Jessica : Yes, that's really a dimension.
Plant People: Yeah, yeah.
Jessica : I mean, as a child yelling at my brother not to get near me, right, because I didn't want to get the poison ivy on me.
Plant People: ah Yeah, yeah.
Jessica : um But what can transfer it to you unfortunately, um are your pets. If they are dogs run through poison ivy um I've had people tell me that they've had cattle getting poisoned, like really friendly cows, and then they have like rubbed and pat their cows, um have gotten it on them.
Plant People: Yes. Tell me about it.
Jessica : Garden gloves.
Plant People: Mm-hmm.
Jessica : If you have pulled out a bunch of poison ivy.
Plant People: Oh, rip it out with
Jessica : Yeah. um You want to wash those afterwards if you are allergic because that oil can remain on there. Yeah. But the best tactic that does work and it's super simple is, you know, if you're close to a water source and soap is to just wash, wash, right?
Plant People: Mm-hmm. Mm-hmm.
Plant People: this
Jessica : Get a soapy water on there, wash your arms, wash any areas you think you're exposed to it. You don't necessarily need, they sell all different kinds of like poison ivy themed soaps.
Plant People: Special soap. Yeah. You just want to get rid of anything that gets rid of oil.
Jessica : Yeah.
Plant People: So like Dawn dishwasher soap is really good on oil.
Jessica : Mm-hmm.
Plant People: But like I've used when I've been out in the like if I'm hiking around or something, I'm like, oh, crap, I just touched poison ivy. I didn't see it there. I have used, probably the best thing, but if you don't have anything else, um hand sanitizer because the alcohol will break up those oils.
Plant People: And so it's not perfect, but it's better than nothing.
Jessica : yeah and you want to avoid like sometimes though we have like specialty fancy soaps that have might have their own like oily kind of things avoid those because you just or you're going to spread it around more um just making it worse uh right right um yeah and then you know yeah go ahead
Plant People: Oh, yeah.
Plant People: Mm-hmm. Mm-hmm. ah We want the skin to feel tight, like you've sucked all the oil out of them.
Plant People: i I was going to say, I know we're talking about poison ivy, but you're probably going to bring up poison oak at some point, and I just need to tell you my, like...
Jessica : Yeah, well, that's what I was going to say next, so go for it. Same way with
Plant People: to funny faux pas. As a plant person who who knows about all of these things, I just want to tell you the story because maybe it'll make you feel better if you've ever done this. So I was out in the woods and out with... um my family and walking around and I was like, oh, look at this. i remember where we were somewhere on the edge of the woods. and I was like, look at this little baby oak that's coming up and it looked just like a little oak. There's an oak tree right above it. And I was like, oh, we should dig this one up and bring it up to whatever. So I go in and I'm like grabbing on it, like trying to look, cause you know, it's in leaves and stuff, trying to look on it. And I was like, why is this oak tree on a vine?
Plant People: And I was like, oh, this is poison oak. So, um you know, just letting you know that ah it's called poison.
Jessica : so then i went and washed my hands
Plant People: Yes. It's called poison oak for a reason and because it will fool the best of us. so
Jessica : right it does like obviously i've seen it looks like a baby oak tree like yeah um i i think like a little like more of like a white oak right it's a it has more of the rounded leaves yeah i would have thought the same thing as well um
Plant People: It looks like a little baby
Plant People: It's exactly what I thought it was. i was like, look at this little swamp white oak. Yeah.
Jessica : Yeah, I've totally have been like tricked by the ah poison oak. And I guess like it depends like if you, you know, you live in an area where you have a lot more of that than poison ivy.
Plant People: I don't see it nearly as often as poison ivy in our area.
Jessica : Right. I don't either. so but poison ivy, like you can see sometimes when it even flowers and have you seen it flower before?
Plant People: i don't know why.
Plant People: Mm-hmm.
Jessica : And it has like, and then they'll produce berries. So um just a way for it to get spread around more that way by, by birds and, controlling a lot of those plants are kind of hard.
Jessica : um One, you know, if you're allergic, that that plays a factor into it.
Plant People: Mm-hmm.
Jessica : um But, you know, ripping it out, making sure to cut and do a herbicide on it at a, I believe it's the fall, correct? Is that the best time?
Plant People: Yeah, usually, unless it's, like, a younger poison ivy and it's not woody yet, where it's just still, like, looks like a normal green vine, you can hit that anytime, because it's, like, fleshy, which is kind of a gross word.
Jessica : Right.
Plant People: I know a lot of people don't like the word moist. Moist doesn't bother me, but the word fleshy, fleshy's kind of a weird word, isn't And I'm like, eww.
Jessica : Moist does not bother me. Fleshy kind of bothers me, though. Yeah. Maybe everybody else is just weird because they think moist is weird, but Fleshy is definitely weirder.
Plant People: Well, you know, we talk about moisture a lot in the plant and baking world, so it's very normal for us.
Jessica : Yeah, that's true.
Plant People: Also, you probably can't hear it, but if you hear it, my dog is dreaming right now, and so there's little tiny barks happening in the background.
Jessica : Very true.
Jessica : can barely hear hear him I thought he was like outside.
Plant People: He's dreaming.
Jessica : ah oh Yeah.
Plant People: he's dreaming. ah But yes, okay, poison oak, we probably see it less, little less in central Kentucky. Does it have like a specific...
Jessica : Yeah, I would say so. Well, because like poison ivy, you can find it everywhere. Like my mom has some in her flower bed, right?
Plant People: everywhere right that's true more of a deep shade yeah yeah good point okay what else you got mmm the mushies
Jessica : It's not just a wooded area. I feel like poison oak is more of a wooded area um where you're going to find that one. Yeah, yeah, yeah. ah So something else that we encounter a lot, fungi, right? So mushrooms. ah My word of a advice to everybody is don't eat mushrooms that you find.
Jessica : If you find a mushroom,
Plant People: even if you think you know what they are don't eat them
Jessica : Yes. That's what I tell people all the time. They find mushrooms growing in their yard and they're like, hey, can I eat this mushroom? And I'll say, And they'll say, can you send it off for somebody to identify it? And I'm like, sure. And they'll still come back and say, we think it's this or it is this, but we still recommend you don't eat mushrooms you find your yard unless –
Plant People: Yeah.
Jessica : You have that background unless you're an experienced forager, you have resources, unless it is something that is very clear, very easy to identify.
Plant People: says okay
Plant People: Yeah.
Jessica : Because there are some things out there that look very similar to each other.
Plant People: Yeah.
Plant People: Identical.
Jessica : And one of them might be a tasty treat. And the other ones may give you the worst stomach issues of your life or potentially, i don't know, some of them can kill you.
Plant People: yeah
Jessica : so um
Plant People: There's ah um an influencer I follow who's also named Alexis, and she she does this thing and she compares.
Jessica : Love her.
Plant People: Yes, she's great. um She compares plants side by side that look alike, and she does some sort of song that I can't remember, but it's she's like, one's a tasty snack and one will kill you.
Jessica : Yes, it's a great.
Plant People: and
Jessica : And then she's always like happy snacking. Don't die at the end of her.
Plant People: Happy snacking. Don't die. Yeah, yeah.
Jessica : Yeah, which is very true.
Plant People: Shout out. Shout out to her.
Jessica : She's amazing. We're big fans. But yeah, there's lots of them out there that are kind of similar. Or you like think, you're like, ah, you know, I could tell the difference.
Jessica : But the Chantrelles versus Jack-o'-lantern ones, if you like look those up.
Plant People: Mm.
Jessica : UK has a great publication of just on mushrooms in general. And they have a couple of like images where it breaks down between the two, right? like
Plant People: Yeah, what to look for.
Jessica : Have things to look for, like the gills, the pattern of growth. like you know, does things leave spore prints?
Plant People: here
Jessica : Like there's all these things that go into mushroom identification.
Plant People: Yeah.
Jessica : right.
Plant People: Even like the host tree, like being able to identify, is it growing on an ash or is it growing on an oak?
Jessica : Right.
Plant People: And because some fungi are so super specific that, you know, they might look like what you're after, but it's growing on the wrong tree.
Jessica : Right.
Plant People: So.
Jessica : Right. Like these chanterelles versus jack-o'-lanterns, like chanterelles are usually like out in the soil. Like they're popping up everywhere, but where the jack-o'-lanterns are more clustered together at a base of a tree.
Plant People: Hmm.
Jessica : um They look very similar and one can make you very sick if you eat it ah versus the other one. So it's best not to just, you know, not to risk it. There are edible ones out there.
Plant People: Yeah.
Jessica : If you are interested in that to get like a great resource book or maybe, you know, just come and attend some other classes, of growing mushrooms right like oyster mushrooms are super easy shiitakes um even though that was like one of my most frustrating classes not so much frustrating but like it's hard to get the material at the right time uh but once you get logs and stuff inoculated it's amazing like they might sit there for a while but once they start producing they really start producing you will forget about them and then you'll suddenly have them
Plant People: Grow your own mushrooms that you know what they are. ah Mm-hmm.
Plant People: It's a lot. Yeah.
Plant People: Mm-hmm.
Plant People: You will forget about them. And, but then when they, and then they'll just keep coming and you're like, oh God, there's mushrooms back there.
Jessica : Yes.
Plant People: That's me. That's my personal experience.
Jessica : So, so just always be cautious with like foraging mushrooms unless you are experienced with that for sure. ah Kind of moving into some insects now.
Plant People: ah Jessica's favorite thing.
Jessica : and insects and not insects, some arachnids, right?
Plant People: Yeah.
Jessica : um People all the time think I like, i there are spiders that I do like. um But they're like, don't you?
Plant People: Jumpy little cute jumping spiders.
Jessica : Oh, my gosh.
Plant People: the little The little fuzzy.
Jessica : Why are they so cute?
Plant People: They are so cute. And listen, I know there's people listening.
Jessica : They seem friendly.
Plant People: Yeah, I know. i have made, i so I'm telling you, I've made friends with the ones in my greenhouse. And like we besties in there. And I'm like, here you Like, can you go check out those fungus gnats over there?
Jessica : Yeah.
Plant People: Thanks, boo. um
Jessica : They're so cute. And then we we've had recently, we've had little crab spiders, little white crab spiders living in peonies.
Plant People: Oh, yeah. The little white ones.
Jessica : And so it's like that's just like their home right now. They've been living in the peony petals.
Plant People: Okay. Do they tend to, I'm wondering, because the only time I've ever seen crab spiders, like legitimately, I would probably put money on the fact I've only ever seen them on pink flowers.
Jessica : Really?
Plant People: Yeah. Like I always see them every year. I've got like, ah I probably have a photo every single year of a white crab spider on pink celosia. I've only ever seen it on pink celosia. Cone flower. And now you just told me peony.
Plant People: And I'm like, they have a thing for pink maybe.
Jessica : Yeah, and it's a it's a pink peony.
Plant People: Yeah.
Jessica : Man, now going to have to like pay attention to that.
Plant People: I don't know. Where's we, we're going to have to call Larson like Larson.
Jessica : Yeah.
Plant People: Tell us more about crap.
Jessica : Or somebody's going to have to comment or something and let us know if they see them on something else.
Plant People: He's yeah. Yeah. Tell us where you've seen those white crab spiders. Are they on pink things?
Jessica : Yeah.
Plant People: I need to know.
Jessica : Yeah, we need to figure this out.
Plant People: I need to know. Okay.
Jessica : um Well, those guys aren't going to hurt you. Be those guys' friends on the other side.
Plant People: On the bright side, they also won't hurt you and they love pink.
Jessica : They won't hurt you.
Plant People: They, they cute little Barbie girls.
Jessica : Yeah. Yeah.
Plant People: Yeah.
Jessica : And they're good little little predators, right? They're helping this out. That's like me coming to terms with wolf spiders. Even though they are giant and they seem like they are chasing you.
Plant People: Mm-hmm. They are scary. Yeah.
Jessica : They can't see really well. They really can't see.
Plant People: Oh, well, that actually makes me feel a little better.
Jessica : So that's... Yeah, that's why I think they like just like run all crazy and it feels like you're chaing they're chasing you.
Plant People: Because
Jessica : But...
Plant People: they think you're going to step on them because they don't know where you're at.
Jessica : Yeah. Yeah. Yeah, they can't. Yeah, they just can't see.
Plant People: See, listen, the more you know, the less scared you are of something.
Jessica : Right. And so...
Plant People: Now, next time you see a wolf spider, you're gonna be like, oh, baby, you blind. It's cool. We good.
Jessica : Yeah, and you're you're it's good that I see you. That means you're like eating other things. So you're good. good at you know my environment is healthy. But back to things to look for, look out for. Something that's not so prevalent right now in the spring, but something if you really like to hike and be outdoors more in the late summer, ah are stinging caterpillars.
Jessica : So that's when they really start to ramp up. And most of them turn like into just moths. Not to diss moths. There's really pretty moths as well. um
Plant People: Just, you know, moths. They have the cutest little feather antennas.
Jessica : Moths. Yes, they do. um But a lot of these stinging caterpillars, they're out in the woods, wooded areas. And a lot of times people get stung without even realizing that they're stung.
Jessica : All of a sudden you'll feel just like a sharp pain, like on your arm.
Plant People: Yep.
Jessica : They have these hollow, ah venomous um hairs, tubes, spines.
Plant People: Spines. Okay.
Jessica : Yeah. That will break off.
Plant People: Yeah.
Jessica : And sometimes it feels kind of like fiberglass. If you've ever had that experience before.
Plant People: Sort of like cat, like cactus, like the fuzzy cactus are like that.
Jessica : Yeah. Yeah. So it's hard to get them out like of, a you know, you can put like some tape or something on there to try to like pull them out.
Plant People: Yeah.
Plant People: Rip them out.
Jessica : um
Plant People: Mm-hmm.
Jessica : You know, but just washing the area thoroughly is about it. But you can see sometimes um you'll see the very distinct pattern because it'll feel like something has stung you, but you don't see a wasp. You don't see a bee or anything.
Jessica : But then eventually you'll see like multiple little dots in a row and that's where the hairs have been.
Plant People: Mm-hmm.
Plant People: Mm-hmm.
Jessica : But a lot of people have encounters with those later in the summer going into the fall.
Plant People: Ah.
Jessica : when they go hiking because that's when they're most active and we see the highest population numbers at that point.
Plant People: Mm-hmm.
Plant People: Yeah. Yeah, I see a lot of the Saddleback caterpillars. I feel like it's the one I see the most often and they're great.
Jessica : Yeah. Yeah. And they're kind of cool looking though.
Plant People: You've probably all seen them. They do look cool.
Jessica : So that's the thing.
Plant People: They're cute little cuties.
Jessica : They look cool So that's something I've also now over time have had to train my kids. Like we like, you know, you see a woolly bear worm and everyone's like, oh, you can pick those up. They're really cute and friendly and soft.
Jessica : But now there are some of them that look soft that are actually stinging ones. So it's kind of like a not soft really.
Plant People: Look soft, not soft.
Jessica : So like just use caution.
Plant People: what's it There's like, yeah, there what there's like a a meme series and it shows like pictures of three different people or three different things. And it's like, um what is it? look Looks like a teddy bear is a teddy bear.
Plant People: Looks like a teddy bear will kill you.
Jessica : Right.
Plant People: Looks like it will kill you is an actual dot teddy bear.
Jessica : youre Right. Exactly. That's what that's what they are.
Plant People: And there are like teddy bear caterpillars that probably will kill you.
Jessica : hu
Plant People: So, you know, maybe not kill you, but uncomfortable.
Jessica : Make you feel pretty bad.
Plant People: I've been stung by a saddleback and it is not fun.
Jessica : Yeah.
Plant People: Just like reach into a tree and snag it.
Jessica : and Some people like have...
Jessica : like GI issues after they get stung.
Plant People: Oh.
Jessica : Like it called like allergic reaction that way as well can happen sometimes.
Plant People: Oh.
Jessica : um
Plant People: to
Jessica : Just ah it makes you, um it makes you feel pretty icky after getting stung by one.
Plant People: Yeah.
Jessica : So.
Plant People: Yeah. Ooh.
Jessica : Moving into more things that sting, and which is quite relevant because my son was stung by a honeybee ah two nights ago.
Plant People: Oh.
Jessica : of
Plant People: Oh.
Jessica : Looking at him in a tulip poplar that was in full bloom and the tulip poplar was just buzzing. And so we went over there we were looking in the flowers and the honeybees were just all in it.
Plant People: Mm-hmm.
Jessica : And for some reason, this honeybee was like, today's the day I'm going to die. And it's going to be on top of this little boy's head and I'm going to get stuck in his hair. Out of nowhere, it just... just stuck him.
Jessica : And so, it was very traumatic for about two hours. He thought his beekeeping career was over. Uh, but he's come back around.
Plant People: Is this your eldest or your middle child?
Jessica : It is my oldest. Yes.
Plant People: Okay. Yes, his beekeeping career was over.
Jessica : If it had happened to the middle child, he would have just pulled the stinger out and kept on going.
Plant People: He would've...
Jessica : um
Plant People: Mm-hmm.
Jessica : But, you know, honeybees, they're one thing, right? But a lot of times as we get ramped up in the summer, um we see encounter a lot of um European hornets, wasps, paper wasps, yellow jackets, ah paper wasps.
Plant People: Mm.
Plant People: The paper wasps, man, they're bad.
Jessica : Yeah, they so, so aggressive and it's aggressive trying to protect their nest.
Plant People: Everywhere. Mm-hmm.
Jessica : um They serve a purpose. A lot of people are like, why the heck do we have these things? They are terrible. Right. um
Plant People: Mm-hmm.
Jessica : But I mean, they are predators. They go and eat caterpillars. They can be very beneficial to your garden and stuff.
Plant People: Mm-hmm.
Jessica : um We just don't want them around our house. Right. Like we, right.
Plant People: That's where they want to be too. And it's like, guys, I have all of these plants out for you.
Jessica : Right.
Plant People: I need you to go over there. Thank you.
Jessica : Right.
Plant People: But no, they're in between and my on my porch.
Jessica : Yeah.
Jessica : Yes. So like trying to knock those nests down, please, please, please, please stop doing the viral hack. One, gas is too expensive to be doing this.
Plant People: Truth.
Jessica : But two, I've seen where people take gas and they put it in a cup and then they hold it over the nest
Plant People: Facts.
Plant People: Uh-huh. Uh-huh. Uh-huh.
Jessica : For the fumes to like knock down all of the wasps.
Plant People: Insects. The wasps.
Jessica : Do you realize how like, okay, so many things could go wrong. So many things. you don't get
Plant People: First of all.
Jessica : but You don't get all of them, right? So there's going to be people once returning.
Plant People: Yeah. You only get what's on the nest when you get there.
Jessica : Yes. And hopefully you are on a steady ladder, right? And you got to hope that like you're going to hold it up there.
Plant People: Yeah. And you've got to get really close, like my arm's length away from this nest.
Jessica : Yeah.
Jessica : So the easiest thing to do, wait till nighttime or like right at dusk, get you a can of the wasp spray that can really, you know, shoot really far and go out there at at when it's dark.
Plant People: Mm-hmm. That good stuff.
Jessica : They all go back to the nest at night and then just zap it with that. And they also, you know, they won't.
Plant People: Mm-hmm.
Jessica : come after you because they they're ideally like unless you have a light on your head or if you have a light a flashlight going they'll follow they'll follow the light but otherwise you know that's the easiest way to take care of them so please stop doing that viral hack that people have told me like it's very concerning right exactly um
Plant People: Yeah. Frozen.
Plant People: yet Oh yeah, good tip. Don't be...
Plant People: Please stop doing that. I have seen that viral hack, and I'm sure it works, but like at at what cost? Yeah, I don't want to get that close.
Jessica : Yeah, but bees and wasps can be real dangerous just because ah for people who are allergic to them, right?
Plant People: No, thank you.
Plant People: Mm-hmm.
Jessica : So that is one to be concerned about, about making sure you have them removed um from your house or other areas where you're going to be be at and hopefully like you know encourage them to go other Yeah.
Plant People: Yeah, it feels like once if you can like stay diligent about it early in the season, like, you know, May into June that you kill off the ones at your house and it feels...
Plant People: and This is just my opinion. I'm not backing this up with facts and that's why there's an entomologist here. But it feels like once we, if we can stay diligent on them for like kind of that first month when they're making nests, that we don't really see a ton more because I guess we've killed the ones and then the other ones have already made nests somewhere else.
Plant People: So it's like not, you know, maybe we get the occasional, but...
Jessica : Right. Right. You only like really see them again is like when we get into the fall because nectar sources are limited.
Plant People: Hmm.
Jessica : That's when we start seeing them come around like trash cans more and things like that searching for ah sugar.
Plant People: Uh...
Plant People: Yeah, yeah.
Jessica : Right. Like that's.
Plant People: Does the um fake hornet's nest work? Like if you put up a fake hornet's nest or wasp nest?
Jessica : I think it does. I think that I see where somebody used one of those in a high tunnel. Yeah.
Plant People: I have used one on my porch and like I couldn't tell if it was a placebo effect or if it actually worked.
Jessica : Right. Yeah. Right. um
Plant People: But like it made me feel like I was doing something.
Jessica : Right. Yeah. Yeah. Because I don't know if that's kind of just like the Japanese beetle traps and the, you know, stink bug traps and, um you know, your catch.
Plant People: Right. Like they don't technically not work, but it's maybe not the best thing. I don't i don't know.
Jessica : Right. Yeah. I don't either. That's another good.
Plant People: Also, mine were like literally looks like they expanded like a Chinese lantern. So maybe you needed like a like um a more realistic one than one that was just like a Chinese lantern shaped in a cone.
Jessica : yeah
Plant People: But, you know, I'm sure there's research out there somewhere about it.
Jessica : Right.
Plant People: Right.
Jessica : Right. And it should be as long long as I'm on my soapbox about things that you see online. ah The murder hornet. We don't have that. um i think it's been completely eradicated now, though, where they found it in ah completely opposite side of the country.
Jessica : So a lot of times what we see.
Plant People: And it wasn't even, was it even on the mainland? I thought it was like on an island off of Washington state or something like that.
Jessica : Yeah, I think I'm pretty sure it was something, it was very isolated. A lot of what we're seeing, you know, if you see things around Kentucky, you probably see cicada killers that are really large. ah European hornets are also very large um that we see, but we don't have any, yeah, we don't have any of those other ones that they were, had everyone so scared about a couple of years ago.
Plant People: Scary. Those look scary.
Jessica : um
Plant People: But we are on the lookout for a new one that Amanda had talked about, right?
Jessica : they Yeah, the yellow leg a hornet.
Plant People: The Yellow Lake Hornet, right?
Jessica : Yeah, because it can go in and harm bees, right?
Plant People: isn
Jessica : Honeybees. So be very detrimental to the honeybee population.
Plant People: this is
Plant People: Be on the lookout if you see a hornet carrying around a bee. It is not friendly.
Jessica : Right. We don't want to see that.
Plant People: Let us know immediately.
Jessica : Yeah. Yeah.
Plant People: um Okay. So we got caterpillars. We've got wasps and bees. What else?
Jessica : I got one more insect that I just thought of that is the deadliest insect in the world. You know what that is, right?
Plant People: I was like, well, if you had asked me as a child, I would have been like, it's the daddy long leg. Because somehow, somehow the world got around that the the daddy long leg was the most poisonous spider. It just didn't have long enough fangs to bite you.
Jessica : Yeah. And he's not even a spider.
Plant People: i don't know. And it's not even a spider.
Jessica : He only has one body part. Um,
Plant People: He's just a little nubbin'.
Jessica : Yeah. Yeah.
Plant People: since
Jessica : ah It's mosquitoes.
Plant People: No, yeah.
Jessica : the Yeah.
Plant People: Okay, that makes sense.
Jessica : Because they transmit malaria and they are kind of terrible that way. But I always tell people, too, I'm like, well, there are also lots and lots of things that eat mosquitoes.
Jessica : Yeah. So they're very important, a part of the, like the food chain.
Plant People: Yeah.
Jessica : Right. Um, but yeah, but it's like the time year that, uh, mosquito control, cause mosquitoes can be vectors of different diseases of making sure to, if you have, you know, they can, I think it's develop in a tablespoon of water.
Jessica : That's all it takes for them to develop.
Plant People: Yeah, like a film of water sometimes.
Jessica : Uh huh.
Plant People: That's, I mean, what? That's wild.
Jessica : Yeah. When I was ah when i was in ah livestock entomology class, they gave us little tiny tubes of mosquitoes that we like took home.
Jessica : right That was like our project to watch them go through their metamorphosis.
Plant People: Your little Tamagotchis.
Jessica : I dropped mine and killed my mosquito larvae. So I had to go ah to Dr. Townsend, who is amazing,
Plant People: I was like, why didn't you just go get him out of one of your dad's buckets that he didn't turn over?
Jessica : and And I had to go, well, was the winter time when they gave them to us, right? And so i had to go and request a... um Yeah, and so then, of course, they joked with me.
Plant People: i would like more mosquitoes, please, sir.
Jessica : They're like, did you pass your home ec class where you had to like take care of the fake like baby or whatever? This is like your fake baby, these mosquitoes that you killed.
Plant People: now The little meep, meep, meep, meep.
Jessica : um Yeah. So, yeah, they developed... like So if you have like areas in your yard that might hold water, you have a bunch of containers, you have an old tarp if it rains a lot.
Jessica : um It's like a shaded area, so it's not going to dry out quickly.
Plant People: Mm-hmm.
Jessica : um Try to like just turn those buckets over because those mosquitoes can develop so quickly. And then nobody enjoys that.
Plant People: Mm-hmm.
Jessica : like you know Having to always put on...
Plant People: I have two mosquito bites my first two of the year and I'm already miserable about it.
Jessica : Right. So just simple steps like that of making sure there's not a source for them to develop in putting mosquito dunks and things.
Plant People: Like.
Jessica : So like if you have bird baths or other things that maybe you don't have, um, like fish, like some of like little ponds and stuff, you might have like goldfish or other things in or,
Plant People: good stuff.
Jessica : we put goldfish in all of our cattle water troughs um the little tiny goldfish and after a couple years they will be gigantic which is kind of cool to see uh but they help keep mosquitoes and other things like that down so there's different tactics out there but you know just keep in mind to it is tis the season for them as well yeah
Plant People: the Nobody wants to be eaten alive by mosquitoes.
Jessica : Right. um But moving into arachnids that we have. um Right. They have too many legs, so I don't cover them. No, just kidding. ah The two venomous spiders.
Plant People: That's how i feel about mushrooms. I'm like, mushrooms aren't really plants, so I don't really know a ton about them. I know how to kill them when they affect a plant.
Jessica : Right. Like, right.
Plant People: Yeah.
Jessica : Right. Yes. um Black Widow and Brown Recluse. If you're in Kentucky listening, those are our two venomous spiders that we have.
Plant People: Mm-hmm.
Jessica : The Black Widow is a cobweb spider. So they make like a messy web. They like to be outside. We see them mostly outside or sometimes in garages. And they can be found anywhere like urban and rural areas.
Plant People: Mm-hmm.
Jessica : It's the classic spider that's solid black and the female has a red hourglass. a shape on her abdomen.
Plant People: Is the male also venomous, Jessica?
Jessica : The male is also venomous, but they are very tiny and they are, um, very tiny brown, um brownish color might've seen them before.
Plant People: Okay.
Jessica : And you would not even, you know, no idea. And then like in central Kentucky, our black widows are more black in color. And I think in Western Kentucky, they're more of a brownish color with the the hourglass on them.
Jessica : um,
Plant People: Interesting.
Jessica : Most bites, though, occur just from accident. Like if people accidentally touch them um or grab them.
Plant People: the The amount of times I have reached in and luckily had gloves on and like, you know, grabbed a cinder block that's been stocked, stacked up outside for a while and, you know, set it down and happened to look, Oh, look a black widow right next to my hand that is thankfully wearing gloves.
Jessica : Right.
Plant People: So yeah, wear gloves.
Jessica : Yeah, for sure. oh Going in with that is the other one is the brown recluse. And... There are so many brown...
Plant People: Those ones are so scary.
Jessica : Yeah, I know.
Plant People: That's so scary.
Jessica : There are so many brown spiders in Kentucky. So that's one. That makes it hard with identifying them.
Plant People: Yeah.
Jessica : um If you get close enough to them, they're also called the fiddleback spider because on their abdomen, they have what looks like a fiddle or a violin.
Plant People: Mm-hmm. Mm-hmm.
Jessica : it's And then once you see it... if you look it up after this podcast or right now we're on here and you see it, you're going to be like, Oh wow. I now will always be able to identify one.
Plant People: Mm-hmm.
Jessica : If I get close to one, um, you gotta get close them or take a picture, right.
Plant People: The trick is you gotta get close enough to see it. ah
Jessica : And zoom in. Um, they're kind of weird because they have also have six eyes, right.
Plant People: ah
Jessica : Compared to, um, other spiders who have eight.
Plant People: ah Eight eyes, yeah.
Jessica : Um, but you know,
Plant People: I'm not getting close enough to count the eyes, I can tell you that.
Jessica : I know. I know. Not, I'm not, I'm not doing that either.
Plant People: Not unless it's dead and in a bag.
Jessica : I'm not doing that. Yeah. But they're about the size of a quarter, right? This is like when their legs are fully stretched out.
Plant People: So.
Jessica : Um, they, we, yeah, we end up seeing these more in houses.
Plant People: Mm-hmm. That's smaller than I thought they were for some reason. Mm-hmm.
Jessica : Um, they will get into structures and things. Um, people again, most of the time, if they're bit by them, it's only by accident where they've actually wandered into something, and you know, shoes or whatever, put their hands somewhere.
Plant People: Mm-hmm. Put their hand somewhere. yeah
Jessica : a lot of people, you know, if they think you have spiders issues or like any kind of insect issues using the sticky traps, um, and putting them in the corners of rooms on the floor because spiders and other critters like to walk around the edges of the room most of the time.
Plant People: Mm-hmm.
Plant People: Yeah.
Jessica : So if you suspect something, that's a good way to like, you know, test and see if you have anything in there.
Plant People: Mm-hmm.
Jessica : um So the thing is with both of these spiders is they are most dangerous to people who are immune compromised, the elderly or the real young.
Jessica : Right. I talk to kids about this topic, I often say to them, I was like, you will most likely go to the doctor if you have a bite and it it's not getting better. i said, the issues happen if you get bit and then you choose to do nothing about it.
Jessica : But ideally with both of these, you know, if you get bit um and it's continuously worse, you're going to go to the doctor and then they're going to be able to give you an antibiotic or going to be able to help you out um without, you know, having any serious comp
Plant People: Yeah.
Plant People: Mm-hmm.
Jessica : complications. But it is like important if, right, it is important if you do find a bunch of them that you do, and especially a dwelling, um they call a pest control company to try to get them under control before they their populations can can take off, which nobody wants.
Plant People: And don't scratch it.
Jessica : So, yeah.
Plant People: Yeah. Yeah.
Jessica : Yeah.
Plant People: I had, I had a friend who, was a you know, hor trained horticulturist. So she'd had some entomology classes and did the sticky traps in her house and found way more brown recluses than anyone in their right mind would be comfortable with. And she was like, what do I do?
Plant People: You call someone immediately. Like that is not normal.
Jessica : Right. Right.
Plant People: And bless her. She's still alive. And so are all her family. So it worked out.
Jessica : Right.
Plant People: But like, yeah, you check for that thing.
Jessica : Another one that we've been talking about that we keep saying, like, there's just so many this year are ticks.
Plant People: They're worse than they've ever been.
Jessica : I think ticks and ticks are just the worst. They're just the worst.
Plant People: They are, honestly.
Jessica : Mm-hmm.
Plant People: And they be they're so they can be so small that, like, you think it's a freckle, and then suddenly your freckle is really itchy and red, and you're like, hmm, this is a little freckle.
Plant People: Like, evil.
Jessica : Or your freckles grown overnight. Right?
Plant People: right up but Yes.
Jessica : Yeah.
Plant People: And then you're like, oh, by the way, you can also get all of these diseases because of it.
Jessica : So.
Plant People: um It's fine.
Jessica : Oh, my gosh. Yes.
Plant People: I'm allowed to say that because I have alpha gal.
Jessica : Right.
Plant People: So from a tick.
Jessica : Yeah. So there so many. diseases now that they can like, you know, pass along. Alpha gal, like ah Alexis mentioned, is becoming and like really big in so and Kentucky. and The numbers continue to increase with that. That is mostly passed along by the Lone Star tick, which is...
Jessica : ticks are almost active all year round now. And with our seasonal change that we have, um, where it stays warmer. So they're active. There used to be a time, like I know as a kid where it would be like, Oh, you don't have to worry about ticks.
Jessica : If you go into tall grass out in the winter time or the woods, you don't have to worry as much, but now you still do. you still need to put, um, bug spray on and take all the precautions.
Plant People: If it's above freezing, right?
Jessica : Yeah.
Plant People: Like it's if it's 34 degrees outside, the ticks can be active.
Jessica : Yep. Mm hmm. So all of the things, um avoid, you know, going into uncut fields, tall grass. They really like moisture, tall grass, like wooded areas.
Jessica : ah They dislike, you know, if it's just an open field of blazing sun, that's not really their ideal environment, short grass.
Plant People: Mm-hmm. Short grass. Yeah, like your front yard that gets full sun.
Jessica : Um, you know, do the thing. It might look silly, but if you're going to tick area, you know, pants on, pull your socks up over your pants and then spray yourself with bug spray.
Plant People: Mm-hmm.
Jessica : Um, and and we're talking about using like, uh, legit bug spray.
Plant People: Mm-hmm.
Jessica : ah not something that you might be mixing up at home.
Plant People: ah like
Jessica : Um, that might work great for like, you know, some mosquitoes or something like that, but ticks are a different ball game.
Plant People: Yeah.
Jessica : Um, but if you do get a tick on yourself, it's important to like, after you go in these tick areas, check yourself, have a buddy, have a friend who is willing to help check as well on you nooks and crannies.
Plant People: Check the nooks and crannies.
Jessica : There should be no embarrassment when it comes to that to try to get things off.
Plant People: Yeah. No.
Jessica : Um,
Plant People: Well, because they like to be at like lines where like elastic is, right?
Jessica : Right. Right. Yeah.
Plant People: Yeah. Like you' the top of your sock, your you the underwear line, like your the line of your wear belt.
Jessica : hmm. Your belt. Yep. That's where they like to be.
Plant People: Yeah.
Jessica : ah There's also lots of things that you will see where it's like how to remove a tick. Right. And like I have heard where people talk about, oh, well, you take a burn in of a match and put it on it or you, you know, do all these things.
Plant People: Mm-hmm. Mm-hmm.
Plant People: You will burn yourself.
Jessica : Well,
Plant People: What are you doing, people?
Jessica : I can tell you what else will happen is, one, the tick bites harder ah when you start to like burn them and mess with them that way.
Plant People: Yeah.
Jessica : ah They will also regurgitate back into you, um which increases your risk of getting some of these tick-borne diseases. So ideally, what you need to do is very simple, is just to get a pair of tweezers.
Jessica : Or if you don't have tweezers, you know take your fingers, even though it's like also creepy, and just grab them and pull them straight off. Don't twist them or anything.
Plant People: the As close to the skin as possible, right?
Jessica : Yep.
Plant People: Just pluck them out.
Jessica : Pluck them out, wash the area. um Keep in mind about like where, you know, for a couple of days, like where you pulled them off at so you can watch the area to make sure you don't have any sort of reaction to them.
Plant People: Mm-hmm. can...
Jessica : um And, you know, hopefully.
Plant People: you can I have heard and I have started doing just especially since AlphaGal and knowing that some of these tick-borne diseases are, depending on where you are in the state, doctors are not, seem to be not as familiar with them.
Plant People: I think it's, they're becoming more and more familiar.
Jessica : It's picking up. Yeah.
Plant People: It's picking up because, you know, we have actual statistics that say like the percentage of ticks with these different, you know, diseases. The UK has done some studies on that. Um, but you can also like, if you're concerned, throw it in a baggie, throw it in the freezer and keep, you know, put a date on it and then keep it for, you know, two weeks.
Plant People: And if you, you're, it goes away, it doesn't itch, you're not noticing anything, then you can throw that baggie away. Actually, uh, Tyler, my husband just pulled a baggie of it. tick from like last year out of the freezer.
Plant People: I forgot what's in there.
Jessica : Hey, that's not weird at all in my household.
Plant People: He's like, do you still need this? ah And I was like, no, you can throw that one away. Thanks. I'm not dying.
Jessica : Yeah.
Plant People: um But you know, if you're, if you're concerned or you have, you know, children or something like that, it it could be some, it's just something easy to do and just throw a date on it.
Jessica : Right.
Plant People: Cause it's a lot easier to test the tick for one of these, you know, problems than it is to test the human for it. Right. Like, They can go in and suck some stuff out of the gut and be like, oh, yeah, it's Rocky Mountain spotted fever whatever.
Jessica : Right.
Plant People: Not to freak anybody out.
Jessica : Right. Exactly. but But that's a good practice.
Plant People: We're just saying nature danger.
Jessica : Like i I, do the same thing, which I had a friend was like, Oh, you can tell you're a total entomologist. And I'm like, well, no, I think that's like the new standard now for ticks.
Plant People: Yeah.
Jessica : It's like you pull them off and you like throw them in a bag and throw them in your freezer.
Plant People: Throw it in a bag. Mm-hmm.
Jessica : So, um, yeah.
Plant People: Mm-hmm. there i listen tick bites are the worst like i have huge like swollen areas for like two weeks when i have get tick bites and like and and then you had mosquitoes on top or chiggers or something no miserable in the summer
Jessica : So,
Jessica : man,
Jessica : Yeah, we didn't even talk about triggers. Yeah. We didn't even talk about triggers.
Plant People: Don't even get there. But yeah, the ticks and something I learned today from you, I always thought that ticks preferred like more dry conditions.
Jessica : Yeah.
Plant People: I don't know. in my I guess I'm like thinking mites, right? When we think talk about mites, mites like it dry and we have bad mite pressure and like high tunnels and stuff. So I just kind of in my brain was like ticks and mites are the same thing.
Plant People: I know they're not, but like I was like, yeah, yeah, yeah. But they interestingly like more. moist areas or prefer that moisture i guess that makes sense yeah humid areas the woods yeah that makes sense
Jessica : Yeah. Humid. Yeah. Think about the woods. Yeah, woods is where you're going to see them a lot. near Some near ponds.
Plant People: right on the edge of things as jonathan dr jonathan larson who's been a his friend of the pod has been on before and he does this thing where they're on the edge of something and they just put their front legs out and whatever brushes by they latch on to
Jessica : Yes.
Jessica : Yeah, there's like some of them that like do exactly what you just did have their legs out and they're just waiting to grab. And then there's other ones, which I think is Lone Star Tick. Don't quote me for sure. ah But there's two of them that actually like hunt.
Jessica : Like that's technically what they're doing because like they are, they are like seeking out like from like your carbon dioxide that you release and you know, your sweat, different things.
Plant People: Stop. No.
Plant People: Carbon dioxide.
Jessica : And the same things like with mosquitoes, like some people are, you know, mosquitoes are more attracted to others, you know, people than other ones. And that all has to do with just like what you, you're not like you're a stinky person.
Plant People: What you excrete.
Jessica : Right. But just like, right.
Plant People: But like if you are breathing harder, if you're a bigger person, so you're releasing more carbon dioxide.
Jessica : Right.
Plant People: So here's your tip. Always stand, you know, kind of semi close to the person that's bigger than you. And then they'll flock to that person and leave you alone.
Jessica : Good tip for the day. ah
Plant People: That's my friendly tip. And if you are that bigger person, make sure you have more bug spray on.
Plant People: I don't know how to help you on that. Hold your breath. Don't actually don't do that. But
Jessica : hu
Plant People: um yeah. Okay. Well, nature danger, a reminder that nature is both beautiful and wonderful. And we're so glad to be ah able to get out in it. But she also she got a little bite to her.
Jessica : Yeah.
Plant People: Okay, literally and figuratively.
Jessica : Right. And they all, I don't know, I guess the ticks, I don't know what purpose ticks have.
Plant People: I have yet to come up with one other than they feed other things and make our lives miserable.
Jessica : But... i
Jessica : Right.
Plant People: i don't, they keep us, it maybe they're the ultimate predator.
Jessica : Like, that's not i like...
Plant People: Maybe like if they don't like what, well, possums, possums eat ticks.
Jessica : Maybe.
Plant People: That's why we like possums, right?
Jessica : Yeah, possums are really cool.
Plant People: Possums eat lots of ticks.
Jessica : Possums don't get rabies and like they're...
Plant People: Do we need to know ge their little marsupials and their little, their little hands get frostbite in the winter.
Jessica : They're they're really cool critters.
Plant People: You know that?
Jessica : They're, they're, no, I didn't, but I know they're just like super cool. And like they're, is it their body temperature is so low? Why they don't get rabies? It's something crazy like that.
Plant People: Rabies. Yeah.
Jessica : Yeah.
Plant People: Yeah. All right. So it sounds like we need to have a possum expert on the horde culture podcast.
Jessica : So I think we do.
Plant People: Okay. Well, this is my task.
Jessica : We can tie it into some plant things. Possums eat.
Plant People: I love it. Yeah. What kind of trees do they like?
Jessica : They're omnivores, right?
Plant People: Yeah. I don't actually know. um I know they like cat food. Other than that, I'm not really sure. Probably some Pop-Tarts.
Jessica : yeah I like to live in my garage sometimes.
Plant People: Yeah, I don't, I actually don't know, but we're going to find out. And if you want to know more, listen, Brett loves possums. So I think if we found somebody, he would, he would squeal.
Jessica : ah we could. be Yeah.
Plant People: He would squeal a little bit. I think so.
Jessica : Yeah.
Plant People: um All right. Noted. Hopefully Brett's not listening to this and it's really a surprise. But if you want to hear about possums, comment. And when you comment and you say yes to possums, you're going to give us five stars so that other people can find our possum podcast, which is a great name for a podcast, possum podcast.
Jessica : Awesome.
Plant People: TM, I claim it.
Jessica : Awesome possum.
Plant People: um But you can also follow us on Instagram at hordeculturepodcast. Shoot us an email. That'll be in the show notes. If you have any questions about things that we talk about, um you know, if you want to know more about the tick research, we can we can send send that along. to Lovely grad students went to every single county in Kentucky and collected ticks as part of her research project and tested them. So bless her, bless them in their in their endeavors. But if you need any information, always feel free to reach out. We are more than happy to help you. And we hope you keep listening and we hope you'll join us again next time. Have great one.
