Welcome!

Bugs & Creatures

Ladybugs Dont let those black-on-red polka dots fool
you! Not only are they cute to look at, but they are hungry
critters that love a good feed on aphids and other insects.
Ladybugs perform a valuable service in the garden.

Sowbugs At home in a compost bin, they help break down

organic matter.

Spiders They control other pests in your garden, and are

food for the birds. Spiders are hugely beneficial because they
catch numerous other insects in their web.

Dragonflies Beautiful, beneficial predators, they feed on

many insects, especially pests such as mosquitoes. They can
often be found near ponds or slow streams, and woodlands. If
you dont live near a wetland you can consider building a
dragonfly pond.

Butterflies Butterflies are magnificent. To attract them to

your garden, plant nectar-producing flowers and bushes.
Butterflies like colourful flowers and sunlight. Butterflyfriendly
gardens also need a shallow watering hole for the
butterflies to drink from.

Go Away! Bugs & Creatures

Aphids Aphids love to suck the juices from your plants

Slugs and Snails They usually show up at night for to

feast on leaves and plants. Pick them up each morning
and drop them into your compost bin.

Caterpillars Caterpillars eat your plants leaves.

Gently pick them off your twigs and branches and place
them in the grass away from your garden.

Weevils Weevils are white grub-like larvae that can be

found in the ground, and have an intense fondness for roots
as a food source. Prune off the infested area, bag and
dispose of it. Also provide plenty of habitat for natural

predators such as wasps and flies.

My Garden!
My garden consists of numerous vegetable beds surrounded by
a diverse
border of annual and perennial flowers, herbs, and fruit trees.
Next to
the garden are wild areas where some of the less troublesome
weeds
grow to maturity.
And among the vegetable beds are plots of alfalfa, clover, and
buckwheat. In these places dwell a militia of beneficial insects,
ready to
emerge to eat or parasitize other insects that may be harmful to
our
plants.
On a warm summer day, I can see a light haze of tiny parasitic
wasps
visiting the fennel flowers in search of nectar. The nectar will
sustain
them while they look for aphids or caterpillars in which to
deposit their

eggs. It's a relief to have such formidable allies. I haven't

needed even an
organic pesticide in 15 years.
To create a welcoming habitat for your insect helpers, first you
need to
know something about them. A good way to start is to grab a
hand lens
and a picture book of insects and take a rough census of your
resident
population. If you've avoided using pesticides and have a
variety of plants
growing,
you may find many allies already present. The ones you're most
likely to
see include lady beetles, ground beetles, lacewings, hover flies,
a couple
of true bugs, and a few tiny wasps. These can be divided into
two groups:
those that eat their prey directly (predators) and those that
deposit their
eggs on or into their host (parasitoids).
Beneficial insects (sometimes called beneficial bugs) are any of
a
number of species of insects that perform valued services

like pollination and pest control.

The concept of beneficial is subjective and only arises in light of
desired
outcomes from a human perspective. In farming and agriculture,
where
the goal is to raise selected crops, insects that hinder the
production
process are classified as pests, while insects that assist
production are
considered beneficial.
In horticulture and gardening; pest control, habitat integration,
and
'natural vitality' aesthetics are the desired outcome with
beneficial
insects.
Encouraging beneficial insects, by providing suitable living
conditions, is a
pest control strategy, often used in organic farming, organic
gardening or
Integrated Pest Management. Companies specializing in
biological pest
control sell many types of beneficial insects, particularly for use
in
enclosed areas, like greenhouses.

Last but not the least!

E v e r y b ug i s a n in s e c t . . .
b u t n o t e v e r y i n se c t i s a b u g !
I s i t s o me t h i n g th a t b o t h e r s y o u ?
" D o n ' t b u g m e ! "O r i s i t wh e n s ome o n
e a c t s c r az y ?
" Yo u` r e b u ggy ! "
I s it t h e f l u?
" K e r-c h e w-w-w-w! I c a u g h t a b u g . "
O r i s i t wh e n y o u r c o mp u t e r d o e s n ' t
wo r k ?
" T h i s s o f t wa r e h a s b u g s ! "
W e l l , to s om e p e o p l e , " b u g s " a r e a l l th e l
i t t l e c r e e p y-c r aw l y
t h i n g s th a t s c a r e p e o p le j u s t b y b e i n
g around. True "b ug s" ar e a
t y p e o f in s e c t .
I n s e c t s h a v e t h r e e ma i n p a r t s to t h
e ir b od y a he ad , t h or ax,
a n d a b d o me n , s ix l e g s , o n e p a i r o f a n
t e nn a e , a n d u s u a l l y t wo
p a i r s o f wi n g s .

A t r u e "b u g" is a t y p e o f in se ct cal

l e d H emi p t e r a ( p ro no u n c e d " h eMI P-t e r-a "
me a n in g " h a l f wi n g " ) th a t h a v e a mo u
t h p ar t t hat
u s u a l l y co me s o u t o f t h e t i p o f t he i r
h e ad t h a t i s u s e d fo r p i e r c i n g
a n d s u ck i n g .
T r u e b u g s a r e o f t e n n o t we l c o me v i s i
t o r s i n a h o me o r g a r d e n .
M a n y t h in g s we ca l l b u g s a r e n o t A C T
UA L L Y b u g s .
F o r e x amp l e , sp i d e r s a r e n o t b u g s b e
c a u s e t h e y h a v e n o s u c k i n g mo u t h p
a r t . T h e y a r e n o t e v e n an i n s e c t b e c
au se t h e y h ave e ig h t
l e g s a n d o n l y two b o d y p a r t s !
Do insects " bug" you?
B e f o r e y o u s q u i sh t h a t l i t t l e g u y ,
T H I N K TW I CE . . . h e m a y b e a f ri e n d !
I f you have ever b een stung by a b ee,
b u z z e d b y a p e sk y mo s q u i t o o r h ad th e l
e aves of your favor ite p l ant eate n b y
a hung ry cat e r p illar, y ou h av e pr ob a
b l y wo n d e r e d . . . wh a t g o o d a r e i n s e c t
s , a n y wa y ?

Y e s. ... it is t r u e t h at in se ct s can ca
u s e d ama g e , bu t t h e y c a n a l so b e v e r y
he l pful.

Eco-Friendly Ways to Get Rid of Garden Pests

Pests are a problem in many gardens and can ruin flower bed and vegetables. When dealing with pests,
choose methods that are safe for both plants and humans. Avoid using harsh chemicals as much as possible.
Here are some eco-friendly tips to help get rid of pesky garden pests.

To eliminate insects around the garden, take an empty 2 liter soda bottle
with 1 cup apple cider vinegar and 1 cup sugar. Slice up a banana peel into small pieces, put into the bottle,
add 1 cup cold water, shake. Tie a piece of string on a low tree branch or place it on the ground to kill pests.
Get rid of mealy bugs, one of the most insidious and common pests, by soaking q-tips in white vinegar. Nip
them in the bud by dabbing insects with full strength white vinegar.
Keeping hungry insects away from vegetables by shredding aluminum foil into strips and mixing them in
the garden mulch. The foil will reflect light back up onto your plants. Try mixing old tinsel from your
Christmas tree into your mulch. It will serve the same purpose as shredding aluminum foil.
Try chopping up hot peppers and combine them with 1 tablespoon cayenne pepper and gallon of water.
Boil the mix for about 15 minutes and let cool. Strain through cheesecloth and add 1 tablespoon
dishwashing liquid. Put into a spray bottle and spray the plants every 5 days or so.

Planting companion plants in your garden will deter insect pests. Aromatic plants such as basil, tansy,
marigolds and sage will send a signal to bugs to go elsewhere. Try planting some near your prized
vegetables. Mint, dill, thyme and sage are great near cabbage family plants. Best of all the savory herbs are
edible.
Spray away garden pests. Keep some old spray bottles on hand to use around the garden.
1. Fill one with undiluted white vinegar to kill weeds and grass poking out of the cracks in your concrete.
Vinegar can also help kill ants. DO NOT spray vinegar directly on the plants, the high acidity could kill
them.
2. For an effective insecticide that works on soft bodied pests, but wont harm your plants: Mix several
cloves of crushed garlic, cup canola oil, 3 tablespoons hot pepper sauce and teaspoon liquid soap in 1
gallon of water, mix well. Put into spray bottle, shake well before using.
To foil those cutworms that destroy your seedlings. Cutworms kill seedlings by encircling the stem and
severing it. To protect your seedlings stick a toothpick in the soil about inch from each stem.
Make collars for the vegetables by using empty milk cartons to discourage grubs and cutworms from
attacking your young tomato and pepper plants. Cut off top and bottom of container and when ground is
soft, push them into the ground around the plants.
Get slugs and snails out of your garden. Take a container of salt and douse the offenders. They wont last
long. Since they are mostly water, salt acts like a drying agent.
Plagued by earwigs? Roll up a wet newspaper and put a rubber band around it to keep it from unraveling.
Place it in the area where you have seen the insects and leave it overnight. In the morning it will be full of
bugs. Carefully place the newspaper in a plastic grocery bag, tie in a knot and put in the trash. Repeat until
they are all gone.
Make a natural pesticide by using your blender. Puree 4 onions, 2 cloves garlic, 2 tablespoons cayenne
pepper and one quart of water. Set aside and dilute 2 tablespoons soap flakes in 2 gallons of water. Add
contents from your blender; shake or stir well.
Get bugs off your plants. Just when the plants are coming up, mix black pepper with flour and sprinkle it
around the plants. Bugs will be gone!!
Do you have moles or gophers popping up in or near your garden? Try putting dirty used cat litter down the
hole. They will leave to find a home somewhere else.
Deter deer from your garden by spraying your bushes with cayenne pepper and water mix.

If there are neighborhood cats that think you garden is their private cat box, foil them by putting orange
peels and coffee grounds around your plants. Also acts as a great fertilizer.
Keep four-legged pests out of your garden by soaking several rags in white vinegar and place on stakes
around your vegetables. Re-soak the rags every 7-10 days.
The shiny metallic balloons that we all receive on birthdays, anniversaries, etc. can be put to good use in
your garden. Simply cut them into vertical strips and hang them from poles around your vegetables and on
fruit trees to repel birds, rabbits and squirrels.
Many people swear that a zip-lock bag filled half-way with water and attached over entry-ways will repel
flies.
Maid Brigade House Cleaning Services cares about you and your family. For more information on healthy
green cleaning and green living, please log on to www.greencleancertified.com and maidbrigade.com. For
more information on Household Cleaning Products and Breast Cancer, please watch our video at
greencleancertified.com/greentv.
Tuesday, April 12, 2011 by Marie Stegner

Natural Ways to Get Rid of Garden Pests

Sam Montana @montana410
Ranked #6 in Pests & Extermination
FOLLOW
There are good pests and there are bad pests in your garden. Some tips on getting rid of the bad pests
naturally.
There are good pests and there are bad pests in your garden. Some years it just seems like its a never-ending
battle, you get rid of one bug and then over there something is eating all your green beans. Then you have
the weeds that are actually choking the life out of your beautiful garden. There are a number of natural
organic ways to control these pests.

Controlling pests starts with good soil

A healthy garden includes not only the plants but also the soil itself. Starting with good soil is very helpful.
Good soil will grow stronger and healthier plants that can fight off the damage done by pests. You will want
to dig or roto-till your garden and when you do add some good quality compost to your garden. You can buy
this at the garden shop or make your own compost over the year. Compost will already have many
beneficial bugs and microbes already in it. The turning over of the soil at the start of the year will loosen the
soil and let air in which helps the good microbes survive.

Good pests
You can buy beneficial bugs at garden shops and nurseries and these include ladybugs (or ladybird), aphidparasitic wasps, bees, hoverflies, praying mantis, centipedes, earthworms and the green lacewing. When you
work in the garden, the more earthworms you see usually means the better your soil is. They are great for
making compost and aerating. The ladybug can eat 400 aphids per day. Adding these beneficial bugs to your
garden and yard is a great way to control the bad bugs naturally.

Bad pests
White flies can destroy your tomatoes in a short time. You can see them when you shake your plants as they
fly around. You can buy traps to get rid of these pests. The trap is basically a piece of yellow cardboard with
sticky paper on it. The flies are attracted to the color yellow and then get stuck. You can make a trap with
sturdy yellow paper and put Vaseline on it. Spraying the underside of the plants leaves with water can kill
these bugs if you get an early start on the problem.
Time for a beer. Earwigs are both good and bad, so if you start to see that they have become a problem you
might want to take care of them. Slugs are a garden problem and you can control both of these problems at
the same time with beer since they are attracted to the fermented liquid. Put some beer in a small can such as
a tuna fish can and leave them around the garden. They are attracted to the beer and drown.
Soapy water can also be sprayed on the plants to deter bugs. Use 1 to 2 tablespoons of liquid soap per 1
gallon of water. Make sure the soap is the plain liquid soap, not lemon or perfumed and not a detergent.
Something like Ivory soap works fine. And do this in the early morning before the sun is too high and hot as
this can cause the plants to burn. Tests the spray on a few leaves first.
Neem Oil is a natural product you can buy that many people have had good luck using to control insects.
There are many recipes for do-it-yourself insecticidal sprays using cinnamon, cayenne, Tabasco, garlic,
rubbing alcohol and eucalyptus. If you try some of these make sure you test it on a few leaves or you can
kill your whole plant.

Weeds are pests

Weeds are very tough to control. If you roto-till, that can causes last years seeds to be redistributed. You pull
the weeds but never get the entire root, once you do that the weed will multiply growing off in more
directions from the left over root.
As soon as the dirt is workable in early spring start looking for the first weeds and dig them out roots and
all. During the growing season if you cant pull the weeds, pull off the flowers just as soon you see them so
they wont put thousands more weed seeds into your garden and yard. By using a hoe you can easily take off
the flowers and the top parts of the weeds and keep them from becoming a problem.

Laying down a layer of mulch will help keep the weeds down and also keep the ground from drying out
quickly.
There are commercial products now available that are organic and earth friendly for killing weeds. Just
remember that the words natural, earth friendly and organic dont always mean safe. These products can
also be poisonous to pets and people.
You can mix up your own homemade weed killer using some of the same ingredients as the insecticide
spray. Vinegar seems to be one of the best ingredients, remember what kills the weeds will also kill your
flowers and vegetables. So be very careful not to get any of your weed killer sprays on your plants.
Controlling the weeds when they are young is much easier than older established weeds that will take
multiple applications before they are gone.
Salt and rock salt kills weeds also, but the salt can leach into the ground and into the roots of all your
veggies and flowers killing them. Dont plant on soil that youve used salt on for at least two years.
Bindweed is such a terrible and hard weed to get rid of, that I wrote a separate article about this titled how
to get rid of bindweed
Adding a bunch of ladybugs to your garden will work great, but dont expect it to act overnight like a
chemical spray. The work and patience is worth it when you eat your organic vegetables.
Warning: Metaldehyde baits for snails and slugs are very poisonous to dogs and cats. Dogs especially are
very attracted to these baits. Always read the warning labels.
2009 Sam Montana
Attracting Beneficial Insects in the Garden

Attracting beneficial insects in the garden is a great way to avoid the use of dangerous pesticides and create
a bio-diverse and thriving environment.
It's important to remember that seeing a few "bad" bugs is not a bad thing.
In fact, a balance of beneficial and harmful insects is important to the balance in your garden. And if you
don't have enough harmful bugs, your beneficials won't hang around long!
Click here to learn more about Organic Gardening Pest Control and read below for a list of the commonly
known "good" insects in the garden, what they prey on and what will attract them into your yard.

Assassin Bug
Assassin bugs may be the creepiest looking insects in the garden, but their speedy front legs, aggression and
appetite also make them a favorite. They eat just about anything and have even been known to attack noninsect creatures.

Photo Credit
Some common meals for the assassin bug include:

Ants

Aphids

Bedbugs

Beetles - Japanese grubs, Mexican bean , potato and more

Cinchbugs

Leafhoppers

Termites

Just about anything it can...

Because these little guys can't be purchased, you'll need to rely on attracting these beneficial insects.
They tend to favor smaller flowers that are easier to reach into, so stick with things like: Queen Anne's Lace,
daisy varieties, oleander (careful: this one is poisonous if ingested by kids or pets), fennel, alfalfa,
camphorweed, goldenrod, dill, etc. Properly mulching also helps to keep these garden insects in the garden.

Beneficial Nematodes
Beneficial nematodes are a microscopic, worm-like organism that will go to work on almost all pests. Often
referred to as a biological insecticide, they will target your "bad" ugs but can also (although don't often) go
after your beneficials, as well.
They commonly eat:

Ants

Beetles, such as pine, cucumber, bess, bark, scarab, etc.

Borers, such as wood, corn, onion, iris, etc.

Caterpillars

Fleas

Grubs

Insect larvae, such as codling moth, flea, fungus gnat, Japanese beetle, etc

Maggots of many varieties

Webworms

Weevils

Wireworms

Attracting beneficial nematodes can be tough. You may need to start out by purchasing your first round to
introduce them to your garden and them encourage their multiplication with the use of plenty of compost,
mulch and biodiversity. Planting Tagetes or a cover crop may also attract these garden helpers.

Big-Eyed Bug
Big-eyed bugs make fantastic insects in the garden. Similar looking to the Minute Pirate Bug, they live
longer than most other beneficials, and lay eggs most of their lives, averaging two or more every single day.
They are also more tolerate to imbalanced conditions, search soil and plant surfaces for prey and have
voracious appetites. They will also eat nectar and honeydew when their prey is scarce.

Photo Credit
A large part of their diet consists of:

Aphids and their eggs

Bollworms

Cabbage loppers

Caterpillars

Lacewings and their eggs

Mites and their eggs

Weevils

Whiteflies

Attract big-eyed bugs into your yard and garden with the following plants: caraway, cosmos, fennel,
alfalfa, spearmint, goldenrod, and marigold.

Damsel Bug
Damsel bugs are similar to mantis in both the way they eat and their non-discriminatory appetite. They will
eat any insect smaller than them, and if they can't find anything else they will even cannibalize each other.

Photo Credit
Common prey of the damsel bug includes:

Aphids

Caterpillar and caterpillar eggs

Fleahoppers

Small larvae of various insects

Spider mites

Treehoppers

Damsel bugs are attracted by the following: caraway, cosmos, fennel, spearmint, goldenrod and marigold.
They will overwinter in groundcovers, such as alfalfa; supplying this will help them come back year after
year.

Lacewings
Only the lacewing larvae are predatory on other insects in the garden. The adults actually survive on pollen
and nectar. They will also turn cannibalistic is no food source is around. Creating habitat for them (below)
will help the adults set up house in your yard and have lots of hungry babies.

Photo Credit
Lacewing larvae generally eat the following:

Aphids

Caterpillar

Cottony cushion scale

Insect eggs

Spider mites

Thrips

Lacewing habitat can be created with the following: Angelica, carraway, coriander, cosmos (white
sensation), dandelion, dill, fennel, Four-wing saltbush, Golden marguerite, Prairie sunflower, Purple poppy
mallow, Queen Anne's lace, tansy, and yarrow (fern-leaf).

Ladybugs
Ladybugs are probably the favorite among beneficial insects in the garden, and at least the most wellknown. However, they may not be the best. They are slow to reproduce and will only lay large numbers of
eggs when there is enough prey to support them. Even in larvae stage they eat a tremendous amount of
pests, but are more vulnerable to their predators, the ants.

Photo Credit
Ladybugs commonly eat:

Aphids

Mealybugs

Mites

Pest eggs

Attracting and creating habitat for ladybugs can be done with many plants and varieties: Basket of
Gold, buckwheat, butterfly weed, carpet bugleweed, cinquefoil (Apline and Sulfur), coriander, dandelion,
dill, fennel, four-winged saltbush, Golden marguerite, hairy vetch, marigold, Prairie sunflower, Queen
Anne's lace, Rocky Mt. penstemon, tansy, and yarrow (common and fern-leaf).

Fly Parasites
Fly parasites are actually small parasitic wasps. They do not bother adults, children or animals but instead
target flies and lay their eggs inside the pest (once hatched the fly parasite larvae consumes the insect).
It's diet is more limited than others, but it's very effective if you have farm animals or manure:

Flies

Yes, that's it.

Plants that attract and creat habitat for fly parasites include: buckwheat, Golden marguerite, lemon
balm, parlsey, pennyroyal, Phacelia, Tansy, and thyme (crimson).

Mealybug Destroyer
Both adult and larval stages of this insect are beneficial. The larvae can actually resemble the mealybug,
their prey, another reason to avoid non-descriminatory pesticides when dealing with damaging insects in the
garden.

Photo Credit
The prey of the mealybug destroyer includes:

Aphids

Mealybugs (no duh) in all stages of life

Soft scales

The following plants make good habitat for mealybug destroyers: fennel, dill, angelica, tansy,
goldenrod, coreopsis, sunflower, and yarrow.

Minute Pirate Bug

Minute pirate bugs are both predatory and will eat pollen and plant juices when prey is not available.

Photo Credit
Both adults and nymphs will feed on the following:

Aphids, including corn leaf and potato

Caterpillars

Corn borers

Corn earworm eggs

Insect eggs

Potato leafhopper nymphs

Spider mites

Thrips

The following plants are great for attracting these beneficial insects: alfalfa, caraway, cosmos (white
sensation), fennel, marigold (lemon gem), Peter Pan goldenrod and spearmint.

Praying Mantis
Praying mantis has a longer life cycle than most other beneficials, which is great for your garden. However,
because they don't deposit their eggs until they are 5-6 months, it can be very difficult to keep them around,
as few will live that long due to normal conditions or predators.

Photo Credit
It is non-discriminatory in its diet, eating most insects, including other beneficial insects in the garden and
even its own kind. Just some of its diet may consist of:

Beetles

Butterflies

Crickets

Grasshoppers

Moths

Spiders

Even small invertabrates such as small frogs, lizards, mice and hummingbirds!

Attracting such beneficial insects as the praying mantis can be difficult, but you may have luck with
the following: cosmos, raspberry, flowering shrubs, hazel shrubs and pine. I would also suggest plenty of
organic matter (compost) and mulch to support their needs.

Soldier Beetle
These ominous little beetles are actually related to fireflies (but are unable to produce light). Both the larvae
and adults are predatory, although the larvae tend to not live often on plants.

Photo Credit
They usually prey on:

Aphids

Beetle larvae

Caterpillars

Cucumber beetles

Grasshopper eggs

Insect eggs

Spider mites

Because adults will supplement their diet with pollen, these help to attract soldier beetles: goldenrod,
hydrangea, milkweed, and wildlettuce

Spiders
Most people tend to think of spiders as "bad" insects in the garden, but in fact, most are beneficial in eating
insects and rarely bite humans. The two to be wary of are the brown recluse and black widow spider. Some
spiders will only eat insects trapped intheir web, but others, such as jumping spiders and wolf spiders, will
hunt prey in the garden as well.

Photo Credit
Spiders commonly eat:

Ants

Beatles

Flies

Grasshoppers

Stick bugs

And much more...

It's pretty rare that you'll need to do much to attract spiders. As long as the environment isn't sterile and
pesticides aren't being used you'll soon find them in your garden. Beware of wood piles and othr dark hiding
places which can harbor black widows.

Wasps (Trichogramma Wasps)

Wasps are often wrongly acccused of being dangerous. However, many wasps you'll find in your garden are
actually beneficial and prey on moth eggs and larvae. Trichogramma wasps are the most beneficial and
completely harmless, being tiny (about 1 millimeter) and stingless.
Common prey of beneficial wasps:

Alfalfa caterpillar

Armyworm

Bagworm

Borers, such as corn, peach, and squash

Cabbage looper

Cankerworm

Coddling moth

Corn earworm

Cutworm

Tomato hornworm

Wax moth

Attracting beneficial wasps can be done with the following: alyssum (white), caraway, cinquefoil (sulfur
and apline), dill, edging lobelia, golden marguerite, lavendar globe lily, lemon balm, masterwort, orange,
parsley, pennyroyal, purple poppy mallow, and yarrow (fern-leaf and common).

Other Beneficial Garden Creatures

It's not only beneficial insects in the garden that you can attract. Other animals are equally important to
creating a balanced and healthy eco-system.
Animals such as lizards, toads and frogs, backyard birds will all help to keep insects in the garden in check
and add to the health of your soil.
Creating habitat for these creatures will help control roly polys, flies, roaches and most of the same "bad"
insects mentioned above.

To attract or create habitat for these small animals, be sure to include a reliable water source, birdhouses
or rock piles for amphibians and reptiles and a chemical-free environment.
How to Attract Beneficial Insects to Control Garden Pests

By Debbie Hadley, About.com Guide

As a gardener, there's nothing more frustrating than finding a prized vegetable crop being devoured by
insect pests. A couple of hornworms can level a row of tomatoes overnight. Fortunately, every pest has a
predator, and we can use that natural food chain to our advantage. A sufficient number of beneficial insects
will keep garden pests to manageable numbers. You just have to know how to attract those beneficial insects
to your garden.
Beneficial Insects, Nature's Pest Control:

Put simply, a beneficial insect is an insect (or other arthropod) that helps you grow healthy plants. Some
insects prey on other arthropods, eating pests like aphids and beetles. Other beneficial insects parasitize
pests, eventually killing them. And still other insects help the gardener by pollinating crops, insuring a good
harvest. Ideally, you should try to attract all three kinds of beneficial insects to your garden predators,
parasitoids, and pollinators.
Don't Use Pesticides in Your Garden:

Pesticides can't distinguish the good guys from the bad guys. You're trying to attract more insects to your
garden, not kill them all, right? When you find your broccoli smothered in aphids, or your squash covered in
beetles, you might be tempted to reach for a chemical control. Don't do it!
When you're first trying to attract beneficial insects to your garden, you may find the pest population
skyrockets for a bit. Be patient. You have to give the good bugs time to find the smorgasbord. The lady
beetles will find your aphids, mate, lay eggs, and soon be picking your broccoli clean. As long as they've got
food to eat, the beneficial insects will stay put once they've arrived. Don't send them packing by spraying
toxic chemicals.
Plant an Insectary to Invite Insects to Your Garden:

An insectary is a garden plot just for the insects. The right variety of plants will attract beneficial bugs to the
neighborhood. It can be a separate landscape bed right near your garden, or several small plantings
interspersed among the veggies.
So what do you plant in an insectary? First, plant some early bloomers to attract beneficial insects early in
the season, even before your crops are full of pests. Many of the important beneficial insects, like hover flies
and lacewings, feed on pollen and nectar as adults. By providing flowers early in the season, you will invite
these insects into your garden in time to unleash their predatory offspring on your aphids and mites.

The insectary should include plants of varied heights. Low growing herbs like thyme and oregano give
ground beetles a place to hide. Taller flowers, like daisies or cosmos, beckon to hover flies and parasitic
wasps looking for nectar. Praying mantids will hide between the plants in a well-planted insectary.
Umbels and composite flowers provide the most attractive sources of food to most beneficial insects. The
tiny, clustered flowers of umbels offer exposed nectar and pollen to smaller pollinators like parasitic wasps.
This group includes yarrow, dill, fennel, and wild carrots. Composites attract the larger pollinators, like
robber flies and predatory wasps. Composite flowers include many garden favorites, like zinnias and
sunflowers.
Provide Water for Insects:

Like all animals, insects need water to live. If you use a sprinkler to water your garden, the puddles that
form will suffice to give bugs a drink. Between waterings or if you use a drip irrigation system, the insects
will need another source of water. Make a simple watering hole with a saucer and some rocks, and keep it
full on dry days. Remember, most of these insects have wings, and will fly away if they can't get what they
need nearby.
Give the Ground Dwellers Some Cover:

Some beneficial insects stay down on the ground, searching for soil-dwelling pests. Ground beetles, for
example, rarely climb the plants looking for pests to eat; instead, they patrol the soil at night, munching on
slugs and cutworms. During the day, these nocturnal minibeasts need some shelter from the bright sun.
Keep your garden beds mulched, so ground beetles and other earth bound insects can burrow during the day.
The mulch will also keep the soil moist, and help the beneficial bugs from drying out. Use stepping stones
on garden paths. Many insects love to hide under boards or flat stones when they aren't hunting pests.