ANSWER: Sun Spots talked to the marketing staff at Community Credit Union, 40 Stanley St., in Auburn. The credit union is hosting a Community Recycle Day from 9 a.m.-1 p.m. Saturday, April 18, which is a free event for the Lewiston-Auburn community to celebrate Earth Day. The credit union has partnered with several businesses including a shredding company which will shred your unwanted paper. For more information about this event, visit http://www.communitycreditunion.com/.

DEAR SUN SPOTS: An indoor yard sale will be held from 9 a.m. to 1:30 p.m. Saturday, May 2, at High Street Congregational Church, 106 Pleasant Street, Auburn. There will be vendor tables as well as church tables. This is a good time of year to clean out and sell your items you no longer need or want. Donations are also being accepted by the church.

Please call me at 207-782-3751 to coordinate a drop-off time for your donations or if you are interested in renting a table. There will also be baked goods and coffee for sale. Thank you. — Paula Wing, Lewiston.

Readers can go to http://www.highstreet-ucc.org/ for more information.

DEAR SUN SPOTS: I read your great column daily. Does anyone know how to get rid of the orange beetles that look like lady bugs? Some have wings and some don’t. We live in an old house and they are everywhere, especially upstairs on the windows, etc. — Hazel Cole, Greenwood.

ANSWER: Sun Spots wonders if you have Asian lady beetles which resemble lady bugs. The University of Maine’s Extension Service states: “It is inherently a beneficial insect, and one which has frequently been deliberately released in the U.S. (beginning as long ago as 1916) for the purpose of controlling harmful plant pests such as aphids, mites, scale insects, etc.  They can pose a legitimate nuisance, though, when confronted with large numbers of them indoors, and their secretions can stain furniture, curtains, blankets, rugs, etc.  They do not breed, lay eggs, or feed inside the home, however, and they are not structurally damaging.”

A few things to try that might help you get rid of this infestation include vacuuming them and then sealing them in a plastic bag before discarding or releasing them in your garden; and sprinkling diatomaceous earth around your house to discourage beetles and some other pests from entering your home. Use a citronella-scented spray and place cloves and bay leaves in small bags around the house.

Read about the Asian lady beetle here: http://umaine.edu/home-and-garden-ipm/common-name-listing/multicolored-asian-lady-beetle/

Cornell University’s Dept. of Entomology offers this information: “The use of insecticides for control of lady beetles is not recommended. Physical exclusion, preventing their entry in the first place, is the best way to manage nuisance lady beetles. Seal cracks and openings around windows and doors, openings in siding and around utility pipes, with caulk or silicone or other appropriate patching material. Screen ventilation grids to keep these and other insects such as wasps out.”

More information can be found here: http://idl.entomology.cornell.edu/files/2013/11/Lady-Beetles-20arl43.pdf

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