This evening my dog and I were walking through what I call a meadow near our house in NW IN. Not a high quality prairie. Just a good sized field that doesn’t get mown. Every couple of steps I noticed a small gobbet of white foam clinging to a plant - generally the central stalk. I saw it on at least a few different plants. The foam was stark white, maybe the size of my little fingertip, and about 1’ above the ground.
Any thoughts as to a likely source?
We used to call those spitbugs.
Thanks for the prompt response. So, if I look through the spit, i’ll find a larva? Cool! Something to do tomorrow…
http://uswildflowers.com/detail.php?SName=Verbesina%20virginica
The spittlebugs are cool, if you know of an unmowed area with some edge habitat, you ought to look for this plant in the fall the morning of the first freeze, the stem ruptures and the sap bursts out in white curls of frozen froth.
It’s just a little white grub. I guess you might find it cool, if you didn’t go through a garden hand squishing them to save spraying insecticide.
Yeah - familiarity breeds contempt and all. But I derive enjoyment from observing things and expanding my awareness of what is actually going on around me. Just saw my first firefly of the season. doesn’t take much to amuse me…