After Dennis’s snakebite experienced, I was wondering how people protected themselves from dangerous insects and spiders while gardening.

When potting up a tree, I usually first wash the spider nests from under the rim of the new pots that have been in storage and also from the inside. Today two black widow spiders washed out of two pots and were not happy campers as they ran off into the grass.

A teacher at a school where I worked had a Brown Recluse spider drop on her in her garage and bite her on her cheek. It left a wound that looked like a close range gunshot wound. She rushed to the ER and they were able to save her face and her life, but it left an ugly scar.

What safety practices do you follow, if any? 

Not enough probably. However, we don't have snakes in my neighborhood, just aligator lizards. They eat the spiders, which we have a lot of both. My cat regularly brings the lizards inside so I know the population is large.

I usually wear gloves when gardening and if I am working on anything dense or thorny, long sleeves too. I also carefully broom pots ( and lots off other outdoor stuff) off before moving because they usually have brown widows under the rim. I also keep a pool cue outside for squishing any my broom can't get. We have black widows too, but it seems like less than a couple of decades ago since the brown widows moved into California. I only go out of the way to kill the widow spiders, and the rest of the spiders can stay in the yard to help with bug control.

I will admit, my gloves were those thin black/grey slip on gloves with the rough coating on the palm side and soft on the back of the hand. I live right next to a small creek. We have snakes, lizards, huge snapping turtles and tons of frogs. The only snakes I've honestly seen in my front yard were small garder snakes. Knowing these critters are out there, I'm always cautious with everything including the sun. Whenever I work on my trees, I always wear long sleeve oversize shirts, gloves, and a big hat. No matter how much I prepared myself, this snake stuck me while I was at a rest state with my hands open inside one of my 26 gallon pots.

After pulling weeds from one pot, I moved over to the next pot. I laid my hands up in next pot because there wasn't' any weeds in this pot. With my hands open back of my hands resting in the pot, I glanced around to decide where to roll this pot. As I was thinking, the strike occurred. It happened soooo fast. It hurt so bad, all I could do was jump up, throw off my glove run to my shop sink. I've never felt pain like that before. You can never prepare enough for something like this EXCEPT wear long thick gloves next time. And you can bet, I WILL!

One more reason to like Connecticut 

Yeah, Lyme Didease will get you there Dave! Ever get any bull's eye rashes after a romp in those tick infested woods?

I remember when I was a kid seeing a few copperheads near our house. We do have an occasional brown recluse running around. I know a few people that were hospitalized from brown recluse spider bites just this year.
As far as protecting yourself, you just need to be aware that they could be anywhere. :/

I think the copperhead range includes Conn. just not as common.  In NJ one poor fellow had a infestation of them and no one believed it until he got bit. 
We have both black and brown widows here.  I purposely avoid pots with rims where spiders can hide which some of the big plastic pots have.  Another reason to avoid them is that pests can hide in them and avoid any sprays you might be using.

The greenhouse is a warm and cozy place so I have tried to set it up so snakes can't easily hide.  The floor is fine gravel and under the benches is black fabric which I can sweep.  For my potted plants I plan on weed fabric on top so I don't have to weed the pots. 

I'm a long way from finished but I know what I am working towards.

I never wear gloves or worry about spiders and snakes. You have to be really lucky to see a snake in the city. In the desert there are plenty of rattlers. I spray my Figs twice a day which washes off mostly everything.

I recall moving one year I was getting ready to grab the handles on a plastic tote. However, something told me to check underneath first. And wouldn't you know it a large female Black Widow. Scariest moment in my life lol..

We have all manner of poisonous spiders in SC and also small scorpions. Brown Recluse are small, Wolf spiders can be 4-6" in size. Widdows are mid-sized. I do not protect myself enough but between hiking backcountry and being allergic to yellow jackets I have developed a strong habit of never putting my hands or feet anywhere that I have not carefully scrutinized for a threat. Yellow jackets are a big problem in August and September when they become very aggressive. That's when you need to watch for traffic in and out of small holes in the ground around trees and bushes.  I use rimless pots w/o handles and wear leather gloves. I don't wear safety goggles but I wear glasses which offers some protection. If I am going to be working near any rough or brushy areas, I usually put on a pair of boots and wear long pants more for defense against poison ivy than anything else. Fall is when we see an invasion of spiders and rummaging around the garage or turning on a spigot can become hazardous activities. The best protection any of us can have is just being alert to our surroundings as we work around our plants.

I recently encountered a bunch of wasps while picking ripe figs. Luckily they were sated. I've heard of gnats, ants, squirrels, raccoon, etc but these buggers bore the hole to the center of the fig to get the good stuff and dared buzzed me because I interrupted their meal. Now, I lift the fig & leaves with a stick first before getting near a ripe fig.

My place seems like black widow breeding grounds. Anywhere shaded.
I retired from my contractor business in hvac, I have been under hundreds
of homes. I have never been bit in 25 years working, and I feel fortunate.
Dennis reminds me that protection and caution is really important.
I have never done anything to protect myself other than being aware.
After my wife and I seen a baby copper head in our garden we went inside and looked
it up on line.
Yup copper head for sure. I've went back to picking cucumbers but now
I use a hoe to move leaves around.
Black rat snakes will bite too, don't think all black snakes are harmless.

We have seen green snakes in trees, black rat snakes climb trees to rob birds nests.
I've also seen a hawk 3 times with a snake in its grasp flying back into the woods.
Personally, I kill all snakes and black widows I run across. My choice and my preference.
The reason being many poisonous snakes are territorial. If you do not eliminate they just return and your
chance of getting bit again are good. I do not like taking chances I don't have to.
Doug

I do not kill rat snakes.
Yes they will bite if harassed or stepped on but so would I under those circumstances.  They also eat rodents.  If you have fruit you will likely have rodents.

Some folks claim that rat snakes will not tolerate a copperhead in their space.  That is not true as rat snakes will den with copper heads during the winter.  What I think is true is that if you have a healthy population of big rat snakes then they are filling a niche.  If you kill them then something else will move in to fill the void.
The snake you really want is the Eastern King snake which eats mostly reptiles including venomous snakes. 

Schaplin,
That's very wise and good info to pass on to folks not to kill snakes. There are just too many people killing snakes. You would be so lucky to have a kingsnake in your place,most are very tame to humans.

I had rat snakes when I was raising chickens.
The snakes would swallow the egg whole.
Got rid of the chickens, problem solved.
Everyone has a choice, when they actually have to deal with them.

Doug

We have quite a few snakes mostly milk and garter snakes.  A few massasauga rattlers in the bogs of Port Colborne a few miles from me.

Last week I was moving a tray of rooted cuttings from the ground to a table as I walked away I noticed a small 24" garter snake slithering out of the tray unto the table and to the ground.  I had to move fast to distract my chickens or they would make a dinner of it very fast.

I think snakes have a very useful place in nature's cycle but you need to avoid getting bit. 
They are most dangerous in the morning as they are sitting coiled waiting for prey if you happen to walk by close them you could get a bite.

In the N.E. ticks are becoming a real scourge.  Bring on the possums...lol

Snakes eat snakes. When you have an excess of one it usually means its feeding on its prey and has plenty to eat..
This article kinda explains why I want no snakes on my property, if I can help it. If I had a bunch of garter snakes, then
I believe I would have a high concentration of poisonous snakes to feed them. I rarely see snakes any more, we tamed some wild ferrel
cats that hang around. They will attack a moving garden hose, lol.

Other familiar snake-eaters include the North American Kingsnakes (genus Lampropeltis), which have evolved resistance to the venom of many species of viper. Eastern Indigo Snakes (Drymarchon couperi) and their Central and South American relatives are also frequent snake eaters, and many other species of North American colubrids sometimes dine on each other, including Racers (Coluber constrictor), Coachwhips (genus Masticophis, now sometimes included in the racer genus Coluber), Garter and Ribbon Snakes (genus Thamnophis), and Coral Snakes (genus Micrurus). Among their prey are many of North America's venomous snakes, including the Copperhead (Agkistrodon contortrix), Cottonmouth (or water mocassin, Agkistrodon piscivorus), and many species of rattlesnake (genera Crotalus and Sistrurus), as well as many non-venomous species of snake. Because all snakes are predatory, the existence of snake-eating snakes implies that some snakes are feeding at a very high trophic level indeed, and indeed they may represent top predators in some ecosystems.

Doug

We spray insecticide around the house on a schedule. 

I don't go anywhere on the property without my hiking cane, and I stomp and pound the ground with it before I head in any direction to scare any snakes that may be lurking.   Here all we have are rattlers, kings and garter snakes. 

We have a neighbor who is a rattle snake whisperer.  Well, sort of.  We call him and he comes right over with a long hook.  He captures them and takes them an hour away and releases them into wilderness.

The only rattler we have seen this year was lounging on our putting green.  He's no longer around here.  

Suzi

[QUOTE=leon_edmond]Yeah, Lyme Didease will get you there Dave! Ever get any bull's eye rashes after a romp in those tick infested woods? [/QUOTE]

Thanks for reminding me Leon 

DesertDance....big snake!

Mara, I spray around my trees & fairly small property with what else....worm tea, of course! Yup! Keeps spiders, ticks, fleas...away! Wowglad your friend survived the Brown Recluse bite!

Just another pest to watch out for.
Last night
as I was weeding my lsu scotts black I got stung twice before I
knew what was going on.
Wasps have built a small nest on the bottom side of the fig leaf.

Be careful all.

Doug

Just seen this praying mantis catch a wasp on one of my potted Peter's Honey fig trees.  Good Job my mantid friend, you can eat as many as you want. 

 

Great photo!

How nice!!!

Dennis, I don't know if leather gloves are made thick enough to resist a snake bite.  You'd need plate armor where the plates slide over one another.  Three layers of very fine chain mail might also work.

Well, now that I've recovered from the shock of reading all your reports of snakes and poisonous spiders, I will never garden without wearing gloves, again.  Yikes!  I just have a small, urban garden.  But, I know we do have some venomous spiders, here. Lyme Disease is pretty common around here, too.   Your comments about keeping an eye on hiding spots under the rims and bottom of pots was a great reminder.

I loooooove that photo of your Mantis!  Fabulous.  They're the best garden visitors, ever.  Not many critters that small that will boldly look at you eyeball-to-eyeball and hold its ground.

This was a great conversation....but scarrrrrrrry.

Figgysid1, what camera did you use to take that picture? Everything is crisp and gorgeous. I wish your mantis friend's family could visit my figs too. I can assure many wasps for their meal.

I just used my old cellphone camera on my Samsung galaxy x4. I just got really close to him, that's why he is looking right at me.

Right place at the right time. I have never even seen a praying mantis here before.

Thanks.

I have that phone too. I've only seen green ones, never a brown like pictured. It looks like it cares more for its meal than your close presence.

Every year my wife and I find very young praying mantis on our gardenia bushes in front of our home.
Never have found a adult, only little 2" long ones.
Great insects.

Doug

Cool pic, Figgysid!

[QUOTE=nighthawk]Well, now that I've recovered from the shock of reading all your reports of snakes and poisonous spiders, I will never garden without wearing gloves, again.  Yikes!  I just have a small, urban garden.  But, I know we do have some venomous spiders, here. Lyme Disease is pretty common around here, too.   Your comments about keeping an eye on hiding spots under the rims and bottom of pots was a great reminder.

I loooooove that photo of your Mantis!  Fabulous.  They're the best garden visitors, ever.  Not many critters that small that will boldly look at you eyeball-to-eyeball and hold its ground.

This was a great conversation....but scarrrrrrrry.[/QUOTE]


Lol...they do have some big eyeballs don't they?  And, I imagine it would be scary to have a conversation with one of those guys.