The "Honey-Dew" List?

I remember back in the day that my grandmother kept a "Honey-Do" list.  On this list, there were a number of tasks that were meant for my grandfather to do.   He would dutifully choose items from the list in order of what he thought would make her happiest.  Usually, the list contained things like check the mail, pick up milk at the grocery store or fix the latch on the screen door. Occasionally, however, some major chore was written among the five-minute jobs.  Usually, he knew that the chore needed attention but he never minded the reminder.  Not that this "Honey-do" list has anything to do with what popped in my head earlier but the list name is a homophone to what I observed today.

Honey do or honeydew..both are pronounced identically but mean something oh, so different!  The sun was bright today which finally allowed me to get outdoors.  I toted my camera and my new lens!  Mark bought a macro lens for my camera as a Christmas gift for me!  I have been wanting one for some time now and was elated to be out experimenting with closeup photographs!  I took pictures of grasses, mosses, pine needles and tree bark.  I found that I have a lot to learn about using this lens.  It is far different than my other lens.  As Ms. Ez and I moseyed about the hillside, I kept a keen eye open for possible photograph subjects. It did not take long before I found some likely subjects!  Aphids!  Normally, I despise aphids!  They reek havoc on my plants!  These were huddled on the Asclepias plants or Butterfly Weed!  Tons of tiny orange nymphs all climbing over top of each other.  Tons of aphid nymphs with their honeydew droplets glowing bright in the fading sunshine.  Tons of nymphs eating my plants! Tons of nymphs that will transform into large aphids!  But..it was that honeydew that drew my attention.  The gold blob was being gathered by a small wasp.  It seems that when the nymphs or aphids go to suck the juices out of my plants they digest the stuff then eject it as honeydew.  There it sits until some wasp or ant comes along and dines upon said honeydew.  Eeewww!  That sounds rather disgusting!  Why in the world would anyone give such a pretty little name to what amounts to poop!

All in all, as I watched the nymphs and wasp, I learned something about the relationship between aphids and other critters.  While the wasp went from aphid to aphid dining upon the honeydew, a number of ants crowded the nymphs into tight herds.  I was beginning to root for the ants until I realized that they were merely keeping track of their food source.  No..the ants did not eat the aphids, they ate the honeydew!  Oh, my goodness!  I have farming ants!  The ants were protecting the aphids all the while keeping close watch on where they went.  The ants did not want the aphids to get too far out of range as then the honeydew would be gone as well!  Well, I like that!  Ants are now helping bugs eat my plants! Aphids are feeding wasps and ants!  My garden is doomed!  I knew you could never trust an ant!  I suppose tomorrow Michael and I will wage war on the bugs.  It is never too soon to help the spring garden! At least I did get a trial run of my new camera lens!......Aggravating ants...wicked wasps...awful aphids..What next?