No, that's not spit in your garden
Jun 25, 2024 07:53AM ● By Content Editor
Photo: Laura Durenberger-Grunow
By Laura Durenberger-Grunow - Boreal Community Media - June 25, 2024
If you've been walking through your garden, town, or on a hike recently, you may have come across a 'blob' on plants that looked like spit. But what is it really?
Boreal Community Media reached out to the University of Minnesota Extension Office to ask.
Here was the response:
A few years ago while trekking around in a meadow with my granddaughter she yelled out to me, “Poppa did you just spit on this plant?” Your words are quite apt. You are looking at a spittle bug. Actually the nymph. Wonder why it got its name? If you were to delve into this foamy deposit you would discover a small green worm.
So here’s the deal. This is the nymph stage of the Meadow spittlebug (Philaenus spumarius). The adult female laid eggs last year that overwintered on this plant. These eggs hatched early this spring to yield a nymph that as a protective measure, and in conjunction with the plant, produced this foamy substance.
This nymph will soon morph into a rather nondescript adult. What you are now seeing poses no danger to you nor, if applicable, to your pets, Just enjoy the buffet that nature is presenting to you.
See the following resources for more information:
Isn't nature amazing?
Editor's note: This article was originally published on August 9, 2022, and was updated on June 25, 2024.
By Laura Durenberger-Grunow - Boreal Community Media - June 25, 2024
If you've been walking through your garden, town, or on a hike recently, you may have come across a 'blob' on plants that looked like spit. But what is it really?
Boreal Community Media reached out to the University of Minnesota Extension Office to ask.
Here was the response:
A few years ago while trekking around in a meadow with my granddaughter she yelled out to me, “Poppa did you just spit on this plant?” Your words are quite apt. You are looking at a spittle bug. Actually the nymph. Wonder why it got its name? If you were to delve into this foamy deposit you would discover a small green worm.
So here’s the deal. This is the nymph stage of the Meadow spittlebug (Philaenus spumarius). The adult female laid eggs last year that overwintered on this plant. These eggs hatched early this spring to yield a nymph that as a protective measure, and in conjunction with the plant, produced this foamy substance.
This nymph will soon morph into a rather nondescript adult. What you are now seeing poses no danger to you nor, if applicable, to your pets, Just enjoy the buffet that nature is presenting to you.
See the following resources for more information:
- https://extension.umn.edu/yard-and-garden-insects/spittlebugs
- https://hort.extension.wisc.edu/articles/spittlebugs/
- https://mdc.mo.gov/discover-nature/field-guide/spittlebugs-froghoppers
- https://bugguide.net/node/view/673781
Isn't nature amazing?
Editor's note: This article was originally published on August 9, 2022, and was updated on June 25, 2024.
