Questions, questions, questions

Hot. They have brought out the angry orange icons again.

When did it rain last?
Monday afternoon, June 28th. ~.7" So it has only been two weeks since the last one. Somehow it feels much longer.

What is known about ladybugs?
They are actually beetles. Have 6 legs.

Where did garlic come from & what do we know about it?
I was hoping the 1940s Ntl Geographic piece on Traveling Vegetables would include garlic, but it doesn't.

Woodsnails?!
I began the day Monday stomping about two dozen. They had all congregated in the dog's water dish... {George's funny story about his former housemates in Portland. Doing research. Gathering them, feeding them cornmeal for a day, then boiling, and finally sauteing them in butter sauce. He laughs about the whole thing. "It took some getting used to, but I got into it. He shrugs. They just tasted like butter sauce."}

Woodhouse toads?!
Over the weekend I bumped into Gloria's big, fat toad. She startled me (that seems to happen every time). She had recently seen once of those silly YouTube videos that featured someone petting a toad. Rubbing its head gently. It seemed to like it. (?!) It didn't try to escape. Didn't seem alarmed. In fact, it looked a little like it was purring. [This could be sheer, unmitigated ignorance & anthropomorphism... I wonder what the froggie field biologists have to say about it?]

Can you raise crepe myrtles from seed?
The one we put in last summer got killed by the hard frost at the end of September. We are trying again--a lovely pale pink one this time.