I respect the fact that wasps can sting when threatened or disturbed. But I also respect the fact that they are beneficial.

Every time I’ve been stung by wasps, I accidentally disturbed a nest that I didn’t know was there or I intentionally disturbed the nest and paid the price.

I think you can understand accidentally disturbing a nest while pruning a hedge with a wasp nest hidden inside. However, you may not understand boys throwing rocks at a nest, only to see who had the nerve to stay in place the longest.

PAPER WASPS

Paper wasps, common in Florida, frequently construct and attach their paper-like nests to building eaves or ceilings of porches. The adults seek out caterpillars, which they sting and paralyze. They then take the caterpillars back to their nest and place them in individual cells as food for the developing larvae.

I’ve witnessed the paper wasp as it stings and carries away a caterpillar from my vegetable garden. These busy insects are doing us gardeners a favor by reducing the population of caterpillars in our landscapes and gardens.

MUD DAUBERS

There are other beneficial wasps in Florida. Mud daubers, for example, build mud-like nests on the sides of buildings close to human activity.

The mud dauber is not as aggressive as the paper wasp; it rarely stings people. It stings and paralyzes spiders.

The mud dauber lays an egg on each paralyzed spider and seals it inside a chamber in its earthen nest. Upon hatching, the wasp larva feeds on the spider's body. An emergence hole is made as the young wasp leaves the mud nest.

It may not be wise to tolerate all wasp species living in close proximity to your home. Although yellow jackets, a type of wasp, could be considered beneficial, they are too aggressive and too likely to repeatedly sting to have as close neighbors.

I also would be concerned with any type of wasp or bee nest existing in close proximity to individuals with a known allergy to insect stings.

The point of all this?

Just because an insect can sting does not make it all bad. It may serve a beneficial purpose.

But you’ll have to decide for yourself how close you’re willing for them to live to you. The front porch may be too close.

Larry Williamsis an agent at the University of Florida's Institute of Food and Agricultural Sciences Extension office in Crestview.

This article originally appeared on Crestview News Bulletin: WILLIAMS: Wasps have a purpose — despite causing pain

It’s good to have some savings. When you put the money in a low-risk account, you can be pretty sure it will be readily available when you need it.

Nonetheless, saving is not investing — and knowing the difference could pay off for you far into the future.

Think about it this way: Saving is for today, while investing is for tomorrow.

You need your savings to pay for your daily expenses, such as groceries, and your monthly bills — mortgage, utilities and so on.

In fact, you might even want your savings to include an emergency fund containing six to 12 months’ worth of living expenses to pay for unexpected costs, such as a new furnace or a major car repair.

These are all “here and now” expenses — and you could use your savings to pay for them. But in thinking of your long-term goals, such as college for your children and a comfortable retirement for yourself, most individuals typically can’t simply rely on their savings — they’ll need to invest.

Why? Because, quite simply, investments can grow — and you will need this growth potential to help achieve your objectives.

To illustrate the difference between saving and investing, let’s do a quick comparison.

Suppose you put $200 per month into a savings account that paid hypothetical 3 percent interest (which is actually higher than rates typically being paid today). After 30 years, you would have accumulated about $106,000, assuming you were in the 25 percent federal tax bracket.

Now, suppose you put that same $200 per month in a tax-deferred investment that hypothetically earned 7 percent a year. At the end of 30 years, you would end up with about $243,000. (Keep in mind that you would have to pay taxes on withdrawals. Hypotheticals do not include any transaction costs or fees.)

This enormous disparity between the amounts accumulated in the two accounts clearly shows the difference between saving and investing. Still, you might be thinking that investing is risky, while savings accounts carry much less risk.

It's certainly true that investing involves risks — investments can lose value, and there’s no guarantee that losses will be recovered.

Nonetheless, if you put all your money in savings, you’re actually incurring an even bigger risk — the risk of not achieving your financial goals. In fact, a low-rate savings account might not even keep up with inflation, which means that, over time, you will lose purchasing power.

Ultimately, the question isn’t whether you should save or invest — you need to do both. But you do need to decide how much of your financial resources to devote toward savings and how much toward investments.

By paying close attention to your cash flow, you should be able to get a good idea of the best savings and investment mix for your particular situation.

For example, if you find yourself constantly dipping into your long-term investments to pay for short-term needs, you probably don’t have enough money in savings.

On the other hand, if you consistently find yourself with large sums in your savings account even after you’ve paid all your bills, you might be “sitting” on too much cash — which means you should consider moving some of this money into investments with growth potential.

Saving and investing — that’s a winning combination.

This article was written by Edward Jones for use by your local Edward Jones financial adviser.

This article originally appeared on Crestview News Bulletin: SHANKLIN: Saving is good, but it's not investing

FORT WALTON BEACH — Organizers of the 8th Annual Latin Salsa Festival, being held June 13 at the Fort Walton Landing, seek volunteers.

Organizers particularly seek "school-age young adults" who need to fulfill service hours for their schools, organizations or college credits. Parental consent is required.

"It is very important for those wishing to volunteer to be able to enjoy having fun, enjoy meeting people and to have more fun!" a spokesperson said. "This is a high-energy, fast-moving and fun-for-all-ages event!

Volunteers — needed between 7 a.m. and 9 p.m. — can work four, six or eight hours. Light to moderate lifting will be required. Everyone should dress lightly and wear only closed-toed shoes. Sunscreen or other protection is highly recommended.

Those interested may contact Jose Garcia, 240-4417, or email FWBoricuas@yahoo.com.

The Caribbean-style event — 10 a.m. to 7 p.m. at 139 Brooks St. SE, in downtown Fort Walton Beach — is presented by Northwest Florida Boricuas Ausentes, Incorporated and Breeze Entertainment.

It includes ethnic foods, a variety of local and out-of-town vendors, fun activities for kids, and the rhythmic sounds of live salsa music and other Latin genres favorites.

This article originally appeared on Crestview News Bulletin: Volunteers needed for Latin Salsa Festival in Fort Walton Beach

Have you given much thought to collecting Social Security?

The answer probably depends on how old you are — but whatever your age, you’ll want to consider the best way of incorporating Social Security benefits into your retirement income strategy.

Of course, if you have several decades to go until you retire, you might be wondering if Social Security will even be there for you at all.

The basic issue is that the Social Security system is experiencing a sharply declining worker-to-beneficiary ratio. In plain English, this means fewer workers are contributing to Social Security while the huge baby boom generation is retiring and taking money out.

Still, Social Security has enough money to pay full retirement benefits to every eligible American until 2038, according to the Congressional Budget Office. After that point, benefits would have to be reduced unless changes are made to the Social Security system.

And several changes have indeed been proposed. Given that we do have nearly 25 years until benefit cuts may need to be made, it seems reasonable that some type of solution could be reached to put Social Security back on solid ground.

In any case, when thinking about your retirement income, you need to focus on those things that you can control — such as when to start taking Social Security and how you can supplement your Social Security benefits.

Depending on when you were born, your “full” retirement age, as far as collecting Social Security benefits, is likely either 66 or 67. You can start getting your checks as early as 62, but if you do, your monthly payments could be reduced by as much as 30 percent — and this reduction is permanent.

Consequently, if you can support your lifestyle from other sources of income — such as earnings from employment and withdrawals from your IRA and 401(k) — you may want to postpone taking Social Security until you reach your full retirement age.

In fact, you can get even bigger monthly checks if you delay taking your benefits beyond your full retirement age, although your payments will “max out” once you reach 70. Keep in mind, though, that other factors, such as your anticipated longevity, should also enter into your calculations in considering when to take Social Security.

Your retirement income may also include withdrawals from retirement accounts, such as an IRA and a 401(k), along with other investments, such as a fixed annuity. And these other accounts are quite important, because Social Security provides, on average, only about 40 percent of retirement income for the average 65-year-old today.

Consequently, in the years and decades before you retire, contribute as much as you can possibly afford to these other accounts. Given the advances in medical care and the greater awareness of healthy lifestyles, people are living longer than ever — which means you could spend two, or even three, decades in retirement.

To enjoy those years fully, you’ll need adequate income.

By planning ahead, you can determine how best to fit Social Security into your retirement income strategy. Every move you make to help “secure” your retirement can pay off for you in the long run.

This article was written by Edward Jones for use by your local Edward Jones financial adviser.

This article originally appeared on Crestview News Bulletin: SHANKLIN: How will Social Security fit into your Northwest Florida retirement strategy?