Let the battle begin...

We have recently been planting flowers, herbs and tomatoes. Mindful of the problems we had last year with critters eating our tomatoes and avocado plant, everything is in a raised bed, where they will be less available to ground things and easier for us to keep an eye on. Eventually I'll cover the bright orange Home Depot buckets, but for now they are useful the way they are. 

In the front of the house I've just set some plants around a bench I love, but can't use as a bench because the wood needs to be replaced. 

This morning as I watered the flowers in the front yard I found a pretty black and red grasshopper in the pink flowers. My first thought was how clever it was, to hide in colors that would camouflage it. 

My second thought was to find out what it is, in case it's something we won't want hanging around. And lo and behold, this is the juvenile form of the dreadful Eastern Lubber! This is the beast that ate half of our tomato plant last year (a tomato hookworm finished the job). So this thing has to go! And now I know what to watch out for. It's a shame that they are so pretty at this stage.