I sing in the garden, often and varied. The other morning, I found myself singing No Doubt’s Spiderwebs: “Sorry I’m not home right now, I’m walking into spiderwebs.” (Tony Kanal, Gwen Stefani). In American culture, spiderwebs are viewed as creepy, icky things associated with Halloween. I got to thinking about that, as I tried to avoid damaging them as I wandered through the garden. I guess in spring, there just aren’t big spiderwebs all over because the spiders haven’t matured yet.
May 2010
But by autumn, the webs have proliferated. Now, without rain or strong winds to damage them, there are webs everywhere in my garden.
I like spiders, because they are a gardener’s helper, so I feel bad ruining their webs. Even for those who find spiders creepy, it would be hard to deny the beauty of their creations glinting in the morning sun.
So throw off those cultural stereotypes and take a new look with fresh eyes at the beauty of these fascinating creatures.
© 2010, Barbara Pintozzi. All rights reserved. This article is the property of BeautifulWildlifeGarden.com If you are reading this at another site, please report that to us
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Barbara, you photos are so unbelievably beautiful. I duck for spider webs too. They provide me too much benefit not too.
Thanks! Yes, and I feel sorry for the spider when I break them.
Barbara, Wonderful captures with those rainbows of color. I like spiders and welcome them into the garden~I’m noticing them everywhere, in every garden nook and cranny.
Gail Eichelberger recently posted..its easy to forget the all right when eyes see only the all wrong
The sunlight was perfect for the webs that morning. As for nooks & crannies, a spider is very determined to have a web on our mailbox. We keep pulling the web off for our letter carrier.
Beautiful photos! I was deadheading and weeding over the weekend and came across a beautiful very fat spider amongst the debris I was taking to the compost bin. I wondered about its web – had I not noticed it? But I did notice many other webs all over the garden.
Ginny recently posted..An aspect tenderly illumed
I wonder if maybe your spider was about to lay eggs. It’s that time of year.
I usually clean most of the spiderwebs off just before garden tour day, and I always wonder how many are still inhabited. Do you know? They mostly look abandoned… and too many people consider spiderwebs a sign of an unkept garden.
I’ve never had a tour come through my garden, but I’d probably explain or posts signs about the webs. But then, my garden style is kind of unkept.
It seems you are mastering the photo software. These pictures are gorgeous. All of them. I like the webs but not when I walk through them and pick them out of my hair and eyes.
I don’t like when I walk through them. It feels really weird.
What amazing shots, Barbara! Some of them look like flying saucers! We love spiders and their webs here as well. Just not inside the house.
Frances
Frances recently posted..Size Matters-A Rant
I appreciate spiders in the house too, as long as they stay over there, and I’ll stay over here.
Absolutely beautiful Barb! Love the shot with the babies
Thanks! I got lucky with the babies, although I did bother them to get them to spread out like that.
What a great picture of the spiderlings! Thanks!
Elizabeth
Elizabeth Barrow recently posted..My Gardening Errors
Aren’t they cute?
Stunning photos, Barbara! I just love the spiders in my garden. And they provide such a beneficial service to us. If you want to help spiders, you’ve got to leave some leaf litter. Researchers have found that the deeper the leaf litter is, the more spiders there are working through that leaf litter in search of tasty snacks. The leaf litter provides them with a sheltering home.
Carole recently posted..Beautiful Wildlife Garden- Chris McLaughlin
Thanks for the explanation of why I have so many spiders – I use shredded leaves as mulch.
Barbara, such great photos!!! I too have gained an appreciation for spiders over the years (OK I was phobic about them) especially knowing how beneficial they are to us. And their webs are truly a work of art.
Ellen Sousa recently posted..Small Habitat Gardens of Worcester MA West
Hi, Ellen, I’m glad you’ve gotten over your arachnophobia so you can enjoy seeing them.