Ants and spiders and slugs, oh my!
It's proving to be a very buggy year in the garden already. Good thing I'm largely over my arachnophobia b/c they are EVERYWHERE and in every size and color. The little ant hill between two of my pepper pots refuses to succumb to repeated sprinklings of diatomaceous earth and spews forth bazillions of the things in an every evening frenzy. And I can't tell you how many slugs I've accidentally touched and then been forced to smush. Eeeew.
We also had aphids for a bit, but the garlic spray seems to have taken care of them. Saw quite a few grasshoppers out and about this morning. I suspect they are the ones who've been munching on my morning glory seedlings.
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be deployed immediately! Thanks! 
In exchange, I'll share my tip for any of the little buggers that actually make it into the house:
Mix Borax and powdered sugar 1-to-1. Take an old cream cheese tub (cleaned, of course) or similar and poke a lot of holes in the top (a heated nail works great for this). Place the Borax-sugar in the tub, put on the holey lid and place it in the path of the ants. They are attracted to and eat the sugar and they take it, along with the lethal Borax, back to their nest. 
That's actually a pic of the "Red Dragon" propane "weeder." As vexed as I am by ants (and WEEDS-- the things are vigorenormous this year), that just has "I burnt down my house" written all over it.
Pennyroyal is a ground-cover herb that grows like a weed. Ants can't stand the stuff. We found that putting a few sprigs in the bottom of a pot before adding the dirt does wonders to keep the ants from making a home in the potted plants. It pulls up with roots easily so we transplant it right over the ant hills. Man that pisses them off, but they move on. It's also a great insect repellant for your body - just crush a few leaves and rub them over your exposed areas.
As for the spiders, the tiniest ones need something to eat and aphids sound about right. We have a no-kill rule for spiders. There are very few you need to worry about getting bitten by and they do far more good than any possible harm. Lady bugs are cute, but they're indiscriminate consumers and while they do munch on aphids they also eat beneficial insects. Don't bother buying them. They rarely stay in the spot they are released. Praying mantis is another "eat everything in sight", but on balance both lady bugs and praying mantis are beneficial. I read somewhere that a praying mantis male can't achieve while his head is still attached. Sounds about right.
of Facebook is happening outside my door. 
Fortunately, I no longer freak out at the sight of one as I did in younger days b/c I'd be in 24/7 screaming meemie mode.
We only had one praying mantis last year and she hung out on the radish greens mostly, but didn't eat too much.
Wish I'd known about the pennyroyal before I planted all my pots, but will tuck that one away for next year.
