ついに、小さい赤い蟻がサルスベリに昇らなくなる

　物事はあれこれ工夫すれば、解決法はあるものと実感してます。枝の端から端まで直径８mもある大きなサルスベリは幹が太いことから、その内部に「小さな赤い蟻」が巣を作り、このままでは長い間に蝕まれ、樹勢が悪くなる恐れがあります。

　日本に古来からいる黒蟻は地中に巣を作りますが、「小さな赤い蟻」は樹木の幹の中に巣を作ることから、私は困り、あれこれ手を尽くしましたが、数千と言う数で相変わらず列を作り幹に登って巣穴に入っていく様子が見えました。冬季は幹の中で冬眠している可能性があります。

　先日、お知らせした通り、この対策として、私は幹にガムテープの粘着面を表にし、ぐるっと巻いてみました。その後、毎日、様子を見てますが、ついに私のこの方法に軍配が上がったようです。あれだけ列をなして幹に登っていた「小さな赤い蟻」が、その後、一匹も姿が見えなくなりました。しかし、ガムテープに粘着力がなくなれば、また、登りだす可能性があります。このため、暫くは定期的にガムテープを取り替えるつもりですが、この結果に私はほっとしてます。

　ところで、このサルスベリは今が満開で、多くの花や蕾に重さがあるので、ご覧の通り、開花中は枝先が垂れ下がり、これも風流な形となっています。背の高い私は頭を下げて下を潜ります。今後も、樹木はもちろん、私自身、衰え始めてる「記憶力」の解決策を考えたり、健康維持対策をいろいろ考え実践し、明日から始まる「秋」を健康に過ごたいと思います。

Dear my friends throughout the world

　I feel that there is a solution if we try various ways. The trunk of a large crepe myrtle in my garden is 8m in diameter from branch to branch, and the "little red ants" build their nests inside it. If this situation continues, the trunk will be eaten away over a long period and the tree's vigor may deteriorate.

　As you know, black ants which have been in Japan since ancient times, build their nests underground, but the "little red ants" build their nests inside the trunk of the tree, of course which was a big problem for me, and I tried various ways, but I could still see thousands of them climbing up the trunk in a line and entering their nests. They may be hibernating inside the trunk in winter, I guess.

　As I wrote the other day, as a countermeasure, I tried wrapping the trunk with gummed tape with the sticky side up. Since then, I have been checking the situation every day, and it seems that my method has finally won out. The "little red ants" that had been climbing up the trunk in a line have not been seen. However, if the gummed tape loses its adhesive power, they may start climbing again. For this reason, I plan to replace the gummed tape regularly for a while, but I am really relieved with this results.

　Not change the subject, but this crepe myrtle is currently in full bloom, and as the many flowers and buds are heavy, as you can see, the tips of the branches droop during flowering, which also creates an elegant shape. Being tall, I bow my head and duck underneath. In the future, I would like to continue to think of solutions to my own declining memory of English words, as well as the trees, and to think of and practice various measures to maintain my health, so that I can spend the autumn that begins tomorrow in good health.

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