Let the bugs do the work! How Good Bugs Can Help Your Garden Thrive
Website design By BotEap.comYou have tilled the soil, sprouted the seeds or carefully chosen your plants, faithfully watered and finally your plants are growing and you can almost taste that fresh tomato or crisp cucumber. But it’s another thing to eat your vegetables before you have the chance. After all your hard work, those nasty critters are having a feast at your expense. But you don’t have to spray your garden with harmful chemicals to protect your crop. Let the bugs do the work for you!
Website design By BotEap.comUsing good bugs to eliminate insect pests that damage or destroy your plants is just one of the ways you can manage your garden without harmful pesticides. Remember, most bugs in your garden are either harmless or actually help your plants. When you stop using pesticides and have a variety of plants growing near or in your garden, you will attract many allies. There are two types of useful insects. They are predators: those that eat their prey, and parasitoids: those that lay their eggs on or inside their hosts, ultimately killing them.
Website design By BotEap.comTo take advantage of these natural predators, you’ll want to turn your yard into a friendly habitat where beneficial insects make themselves at home.
Be sure to provide: Website design By BotEap.como Shelter: Keep the soil covered with abundant organic matter.
o Pure Environment: Never put harmful chemicals in the habitat of your beneficial insect. If you use any insecticides to get rid of pests in your garden, you also run a great risk of getting rid of insects that are useful. When you stop using all chemicals, you may temporarily experience a surge in pests. It may take a while for the beneficial insect population to grow to adequate levels
o Food: Keep in mind that most predators and many parasites also use pollen and nectar for food. You’ll want to include plants that bloom at different times during the growing season so you always have a source of pollen and nectar.
o Water: Keep the soil moist and water the plants in the morning. You can also provide shallow dishes filled with water or birdbaths with a couple of rocks sticking out of the surface of the water, so the insects have access to plenty of water.
o Create your garden habitat to quickly attract beneficial insects. Plant annuals like alyssum, cosmos, sunflowers, and marigolds. At the same time, plant flowers and perennial herbs, such as yarrow, lavender, peppermint, fennel, angelica, and tansy. After you have harvested the dill, parsley, carrots, and cilantro, let the garden plants flourish; your insect allies love them. Website design By BotEap.comHere is a list of some of the beneficial insects that you want to attract to your garden. Website design By BotEap.comAPHID MOSQUITO
The aphid mosquito is a small mosquito-like fly with long legs and long antennae that eats aphids. Aphid midge larvae are effective predators of aphids.
Plants that attract aphids include: Website design By BotEap.como Apples, Blueberries
o Cabbage, Dill
or ornamental shrubs Website design By BotEap.comDRAGONFLY or DAMSELFLY
Dragonflies vary in color, have long narrow bodies 1″ to 2″ long, large compound eyes, and 4 transparent wings. They feed on mosquitoes, aphids and other pests.
Plants that attract dragonflies include: Website design By BotEap.comor Caraway, Cosmos
or fennel
or goldenrod Website design By BotEap.comGROUND BEETLE
Ground beetles vary in shape and color, but are usually shiny and have jointed legs. Black is a common color, sometimes with a metallic sheen of another color on their wings. They rarely fly, preferring to run when disturbed, and generally hide in piles of brush or debris. They are dark and about 3/4 inch long. They hunt at night in leaf litter for insect eggs and larvae, feeding on cutworms, rootworms, slugs, caterpillar moths, aphids, flies, chiggers, earwigs, and snails.
Plants that attract ground beetles include: Website design By BotEap.comor evening primrose
o Mint, Rosemary, Thyme
or white clover Website design By BotEap.comHOVERFLY
Hoverflies (also called hoverflies) look like small bees, with yellow, black, or white bands, but they move through the air like flies. Adults must feed on nectar before they reproduce, so they are good pollinators. They lay their eggs near aphids or other soft-bodied insects. When the eggs hatch, the hungry larvae eat up to 60 aphids each day. They also eat mealybugs, small caterpillars, and other small insects.
Plants that attract hoverflies include: Website design By BotEap.como Caraway, Wolfmint, Catnip, Coriander, Cosmos, Daisy, Dill
o Fennel, Goldenrod, Lavender, Morning Glory
o Parsley, Mint, Spearmint, Sunflowers
o Queen Anne’s Lace, Sweet Alyssum, Wild Buckwheat, Wild Carrot Website design By BotEap.comLACEWING (the most effective predators you can buy)
Lacewings have light green bodies, transparent lacy wings, and are between 1/2″ and 3/4″ of an inch long. The larvae are small, grayish-brown, and narrow, looking like small alligators. Larvae and adults devour aphids, mites, caterpillars, mealybugs, leafhoppers, insect eggs, whiteflies, and other small insects. Individual white eggs are found attached to the ends of one-inch-long stiff threads.
Plants that attract lacewings include: Website design By BotEap.como Angelica, Caraway, Coriander and Cosmos
o Dandelion, Dill, Fennel, Tansy
o Queen Anne Lace, Sweet Alyssum, Wild Carrot, Yarrow Website design By BotEap.comLADYBUG
Ladybugs feed on aphids and other soft-bodied insects, such as aphids, mealybugs, scale insects, and spider mites, as well as insect eggs. Ladybugs eat up to 50 aphids per day. If ladybugs lay eggs, each larva will eat about 400 aphids before beginning its pupation stage. Spray non-crop plants with sugar water to attract ladybugs.
Plants that attract ladybugs include: Website design By BotEap.como Angelica, Butterfly Grass, Sweet Alyssum
o Carpet bugleweed, coriander, cosmos, dandelion and dill
o Fennel, Goldenrod, Tansy, Wild Carrot, Yarrow Website design By BotEap.commason bee
These bees are more like house flies than honey bees, but they are good pollinators for fruit trees. Most mason bees live in holes and can be attracted by drilling short holes in a block of wood.
Plants that attract mason bees include: Website design By BotEap.como Fruit trees with staggered flowering (apricot, peach, plum, cherry, apple and pear)
o Strawberries, Raspberries, Blackberries,
roses Website design By BotEap.comMINIATURE PARASITIC WASP (braconid, calcid, ichnemiid, trichogram)
These tiny wasps will defend your garden against aphids, caterpillars, tomato fruitworms, tent caterpillars, whiteflies, cabbage maggots and hornworms. Parasitic wasps lay up to 300 eggs in moth or butterfly eggs. They don’t live long, so time their release to coincide with the presence of pest eggs. Braconid, chalcid, and ichnemic wasps are much larger than trichograms and lay eggs in or on the caterpillar. The hatching eggs eventually kill the host. These wasps do not sting people or pets.
Plants that attract parasitic wasps include: Website design By BotEap.como Allium, caraway, coriander, cosmos, saffron, dill
o Fennel, Goldenrod, Parsley, Queen Anne’s Lace
o Sweet Alyssum, Tansy, Wild Buckwheat, Wild Carrot, Yarrow Website design By BotEap.comPIRATE BUG
The pirate bug eats aphids, thrips, moths, whiteflies, and insect eggs. It lays its eggs on the leaf surface near its prey. The cycle from egg to adult takes only three weeks.
Plants that attract pirate bugs include: Website design By BotEap.como Cosmos, Fennel, Queen Anne’s Lace
o Sweet Alyssum, Tansy
o Wild Buckweed, Wild Carrot Website design By BotEap.comROVE BEETLE
Wandering beetles resemble small scorpions when they hold the tip of their abdomen in the air. They are 1/10″ to 1″ inch long and, depending on the species, eat aphids, springtails, mites, nematodes, slugs, snails, fly eggs, and worms. These beetles thrive on leaf litter, fallen decaying fruit, and loose bark from fallen and decaying trees. Website design By BotEap.comSOLDIER BEETLE
The soldier beetle has a narrow, black abdomen and a bright red head, and is about 1/2 inch long. It looks like a firefly, but it can’t produce light. The larva is orange with black markings. Soldier beetles eat aphids, caterpillars, grasshopper eggs, other soft-bodied insects, and beetle larvae.
Plants that attract soldier beetles include: Website design By BotEap.como Echinacea, Fennel,
o Goldenrod, Hydrangea
or Milkweed Website design By BotEap.comTACHINID FLY
Tachinid flies look a bit like houseflies. They can be brown, gray or black, and some are very furry. They feed on caterpillars, including cutworms, codling moths, tent caterpillars, cabbage worms, squash worms, and gypsy moth larvae.
Plants that attract tachinids include: Website design By BotEap.como Caraway, Cosmos, Dill
o Fennel, Parsley, Peppermint
o Queen Anne Lace, Sweet Alyssum, Tansy Website design By BotEap.comYou can see dill, fennel, and sweet alyssum appear over and over again in the list above, and you can attract many beneficial insects just by including these three plants in your garden. By helping good bugs thrive, you can grow healthier, more natural vegetables for you and your family, and keep pesticides out of your food and our water supply. For more tips and great links, check out the link below to Organic Eden. Happy gardening!
Be sure to provide: Website design By BotEap.como Shelter: Keep the soil covered with abundant organic matter.
o Pure Environment: Never put harmful chemicals in the habitat of your beneficial insect. If you use any insecticides to get rid of pests in your garden, you also run a great risk of getting rid of insects that are useful. When you stop using all chemicals, you may temporarily experience a surge in pests. It may take a while for the beneficial insect population to grow to adequate levels
o Food: Keep in mind that most predators and many parasites also use pollen and nectar for food. You’ll want to include plants that bloom at different times during the growing season so you always have a source of pollen and nectar.
o Water: Keep the soil moist and water the plants in the morning. You can also provide shallow dishes filled with water or birdbaths with a couple of rocks sticking out of the surface of the water, so the insects have access to plenty of water.
o Create your garden habitat to quickly attract beneficial insects. Plant annuals like alyssum, cosmos, sunflowers, and marigolds. At the same time, plant flowers and perennial herbs, such as yarrow, lavender, peppermint, fennel, angelica, and tansy. After you have harvested the dill, parsley, carrots, and cilantro, let the garden plants flourish; your insect allies love them. Website design By BotEap.comHere is a list of some of the beneficial insects that you want to attract to your garden. Website design By BotEap.comAPHID MOSQUITO
The aphid mosquito is a small mosquito-like fly with long legs and long antennae that eats aphids. Aphid midge larvae are effective predators of aphids.
Plants that attract aphids include: Website design By BotEap.como Apples, Blueberries
o Cabbage, Dill
or ornamental shrubs Website design By BotEap.comDRAGONFLY or DAMSELFLY
Dragonflies vary in color, have long narrow bodies 1″ to 2″ long, large compound eyes, and 4 transparent wings. They feed on mosquitoes, aphids and other pests.
Plants that attract dragonflies include: Website design By BotEap.comor Caraway, Cosmos
or fennel
or goldenrod Website design By BotEap.comGROUND BEETLE
Ground beetles vary in shape and color, but are usually shiny and have jointed legs. Black is a common color, sometimes with a metallic sheen of another color on their wings. They rarely fly, preferring to run when disturbed, and generally hide in piles of brush or debris. They are dark and about 3/4 inch long. They hunt at night in leaf litter for insect eggs and larvae, feeding on cutworms, rootworms, slugs, caterpillar moths, aphids, flies, chiggers, earwigs, and snails.
Plants that attract ground beetles include: Website design By BotEap.comor evening primrose
o Mint, Rosemary, Thyme
or white clover Website design By BotEap.comHOVERFLY
Hoverflies (also called hoverflies) look like small bees, with yellow, black, or white bands, but they move through the air like flies. Adults must feed on nectar before they reproduce, so they are good pollinators. They lay their eggs near aphids or other soft-bodied insects. When the eggs hatch, the hungry larvae eat up to 60 aphids each day. They also eat mealybugs, small caterpillars, and other small insects.
Plants that attract hoverflies include: Website design By BotEap.como Caraway, Wolfmint, Catnip, Coriander, Cosmos, Daisy, Dill
o Fennel, Goldenrod, Lavender, Morning Glory
o Parsley, Mint, Spearmint, Sunflowers
o Queen Anne’s Lace, Sweet Alyssum, Wild Buckwheat, Wild Carrot Website design By BotEap.comLACEWING (the most effective predators you can buy)
Lacewings have light green bodies, transparent lacy wings, and are between 1/2″ and 3/4″ of an inch long. The larvae are small, grayish-brown, and narrow, looking like small alligators. Larvae and adults devour aphids, mites, caterpillars, mealybugs, leafhoppers, insect eggs, whiteflies, and other small insects. Individual white eggs are found attached to the ends of one-inch-long stiff threads.
Plants that attract lacewings include: Website design By BotEap.como Angelica, Caraway, Coriander and Cosmos
o Dandelion, Dill, Fennel, Tansy
o Queen Anne Lace, Sweet Alyssum, Wild Carrot, Yarrow Website design By BotEap.comLADYBUG
Ladybugs feed on aphids and other soft-bodied insects, such as aphids, mealybugs, scale insects, and spider mites, as well as insect eggs. Ladybugs eat up to 50 aphids per day. If ladybugs lay eggs, each larva will eat about 400 aphids before beginning its pupation stage. Spray non-crop plants with sugar water to attract ladybugs.
Plants that attract ladybugs include: Website design By BotEap.como Angelica, Butterfly Grass, Sweet Alyssum
o Carpet bugleweed, coriander, cosmos, dandelion and dill
o Fennel, Goldenrod, Tansy, Wild Carrot, Yarrow Website design By BotEap.commason bee
These bees are more like house flies than honey bees, but they are good pollinators for fruit trees. Most mason bees live in holes and can be attracted by drilling short holes in a block of wood.
Plants that attract mason bees include: Website design By BotEap.como Fruit trees with staggered flowering (apricot, peach, plum, cherry, apple and pear)
o Strawberries, Raspberries, Blackberries,
roses Website design By BotEap.comMINIATURE PARASITIC WASP (braconid, calcid, ichnemiid, trichogram)
These tiny wasps will defend your garden against aphids, caterpillars, tomato fruitworms, tent caterpillars, whiteflies, cabbage maggots and hornworms. Parasitic wasps lay up to 300 eggs in moth or butterfly eggs. They don’t live long, so time their release to coincide with the presence of pest eggs. Braconid, chalcid, and ichnemic wasps are much larger than trichograms and lay eggs in or on the caterpillar. The hatching eggs eventually kill the host. These wasps do not sting people or pets.
Plants that attract parasitic wasps include: Website design By BotEap.como Allium, caraway, coriander, cosmos, saffron, dill
o Fennel, Goldenrod, Parsley, Queen Anne’s Lace
o Sweet Alyssum, Tansy, Wild Buckwheat, Wild Carrot, Yarrow Website design By BotEap.comPIRATE BUG
The pirate bug eats aphids, thrips, moths, whiteflies, and insect eggs. It lays its eggs on the leaf surface near its prey. The cycle from egg to adult takes only three weeks.
Plants that attract pirate bugs include: Website design By BotEap.como Cosmos, Fennel, Queen Anne’s Lace
o Sweet Alyssum, Tansy
o Wild Buckweed, Wild Carrot Website design By BotEap.comROVE BEETLE
Wandering beetles resemble small scorpions when they hold the tip of their abdomen in the air. They are 1/10″ to 1″ inch long and, depending on the species, eat aphids, springtails, mites, nematodes, slugs, snails, fly eggs, and worms. These beetles thrive on leaf litter, fallen decaying fruit, and loose bark from fallen and decaying trees. Website design By BotEap.comSOLDIER BEETLE
The soldier beetle has a narrow, black abdomen and a bright red head, and is about 1/2 inch long. It looks like a firefly, but it can’t produce light. The larva is orange with black markings. Soldier beetles eat aphids, caterpillars, grasshopper eggs, other soft-bodied insects, and beetle larvae.
Plants that attract soldier beetles include: Website design By BotEap.como Echinacea, Fennel,
o Goldenrod, Hydrangea
or Milkweed Website design By BotEap.comTACHINID FLY
Tachinid flies look a bit like houseflies. They can be brown, gray or black, and some are very furry. They feed on caterpillars, including cutworms, codling moths, tent caterpillars, cabbage worms, squash worms, and gypsy moth larvae.
Plants that attract tachinids include: Website design By BotEap.como Caraway, Cosmos, Dill
o Fennel, Parsley, Peppermint
o Queen Anne Lace, Sweet Alyssum, Tansy Website design By BotEap.comYou can see dill, fennel, and sweet alyssum appear over and over again in the list above, and you can attract many beneficial insects just by including these three plants in your garden. By helping good bugs thrive, you can grow healthier, more natural vegetables for you and your family, and keep pesticides out of your food and our water supply. For more tips and great links, check out the link below to Organic Eden. Happy gardening!