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Pests that are good for the garden.Is there really such a thing as a good bug?
Is there really such a thing as a good bug? Definition: A nice bug does no harm, meaning it's garden-friendly and doesn't eat any of your plants or crops. A really good bug eats those insects that do make mincemeat of your plants or crops. But understand, lots of good-bug behavior is hard to find. That's because much of it is out of sight. The stealth stage of most of these insects is the larvae, and that's why lifecycles are key. Even the most avid gardeners may not be interested in the reproductive cycles of the green lacewing, but when they realize that one prolific female lacewing could be responsible for wiping out 40,000 pests each season, hey, they get it: that's a great bug!
Adult wasps are black or brown, with threadlike waists and long legs and antennae.
Braconid Wasp
Why they're good: Braconid wasps have such a strong reputation as killers of pests that they are widely used in agriculture. A few adults prey on other adult insects, but most feed on pollen. It's the larvae that are extremely valuable controls of garden, farm and forest pests. Egg and larval stages of various braconid wasp species chow down on larvae, pupae or nymphs of numerous pest moths, aphids, beetles, flies, ants or other bugs.
The welcome mat: Adults love nectar-producing, small-flowered plants, such as parsley, dill, yarrow, sweet alyssum or wild carrot.
Lifecycle: In some, a female injects eggs into the host. The eggs hatch and larvae emerge to feed on the host until they pupate; in others, the female deposits one egg, which divides and develops into many larvae so tiny they can pupate within the host and emerge later as adults. In any case, happily for us, these bad-bug eaters go through this cycle several times a year.
With yellow- or black-striped bodies, adult syrphid flies resemble bees and wasps, but they don't sting.
Syrphid Fly or Hover Fly
Why they're good: Imagine a pest-killing machine devouring enormous numbers of aphids, up to 400 during this stage.
The welcome mat: These "flower fly" adults favor nectar-rich blooms and are among your garden's most efficient pollinators. Attract them with wild carrot, yarrow, dill and sweet alyssum.
Lifecycle: Several hundred eggs are possible per female though midsummer. The larvae, which hatch out in two to three days, feed voraciously for two to three weeks, then pupate on nearby foliage or in the soil below. Adults emerge in about two weeks. This can recur six or seven times per year.
Adult lacewings are bright green with small heads, long antennae and long, translucent, vein-laced wings; some species have large golden eyes.
Green Lacewing
Why they're good: As with most garden "police" insects, the lifecycle is the secret and the law enforcement is all in the larval stage. Larvae, often called "aphid lions," are among the most efficient predators of aphids. They also prey on the eggs and immature stages of small, soft-bodied insects such as mealybugs, thrips, spider mites and leaf-hoppers.
The welcome mat: Adults feed on honeydew, pollen and nectar. Attract them with nectar-producing flowers and weeds.
Lifecycle: During spring, females lay oval eggs attached to foliage by long, thin filaments. These hatch in three to five days. For the next three weeks or so, each larva feeds on 200 or more adult insect pests (or their eggs) and then pupates for about a week. Take a break from your gardening to do the math: 200 eggs per female and 200 insect pests per larva equal the potential elimination of 40,000 pests in a season by one adult female!
Ground beetles, 3/4" to 1" long, are known for their speed and strong jaws. Adults are black, blue-black, brown or reddish, usually with an iridescent sheen.
Ground Beetle
Why they're good: A pest killer in two stages of its lifecycle, this beetle enjoys snails, slugs, cutworms, gypsy moth larvae, root maggots, tent caterpillars, Colorado potato beetle larvae and other pests that spend a stage of their lifecycle in the soil. Larvae feed on other ground larvae and insect eggs; one grub can eat at least 50 caterpillars.
The welcome mat: Ground beetles hang out in gardens, crop fields, orchards and woods. Provide stone pathways or patches of white clover, or leave a log to decay. They thrive under cover.
Lifecycle: In spring adults emerge and lay eggs in the soil. Larvae feed for several weeks, then pupate in the soil. Adults are able to live two to three years.
About 1/2" long, adult soldier bugs are black-speckled yellow or brown bugs. They are shield-shaped with spinelike shoulders.
Spined Soldier Bug
Why they're good: Another two-stage pest killer, the spined soldier bug effectively targets more than 100 insect pests, including caterpillars and grubs of gypsy and night-flying moths, Mexican bean and Colorado potato beetles and sawflies. It too has earned a place in the ranks of commercially available pest controllers, especially in the control of tent caterpillars. An adult uses its proboscis to pierce prey and then suck out the body fluids. On the downside, they sometimes will eat beneficial insects and occasionally their own young. Nymphs begin voracious feeding when 4 to 5 days old.
The welcome mat: Spined soldier bugs gravitate to gardens and crop fields. Give them a perennial bed for needed cover.
Lifecycle: Eggs are laid on leaves in spring. Nymphs reach adulthood in six to eight weeks. Adults live for about five to eight weeks. Look for one or two generations per year.
A diminutive 1/4" long, adult ladybird beetles' shells are hard and usually red or yellow with black spots or black with red or yellow spots.
Ladybird Beetle (Ladybug)
Why they're good: Both larvae and adults feed on aphids, the former devouring hundreds during development and the latter consuming thousands. Also favored are thrips, spider mites, mealybugs, soft scales, whitefly and a wide variety of other soft-bodied, plant-eating insects. By summer's end they may eat pollen.
The welcome mat: To attract ladybugs, provide pollen- and nectar-rich flowers and leave the wild blooms of dandelions, wild carrot and yarrow. Only two ladybug species — the Mexican bean beetle and the squash beetle — are plant-eating pests.
Lifecycle: Eggs are laid in the spring among prey populations, such as aphids, and are white or yellow, oval shaped and often deposited in clusters. They hatch in three to five days. After two to three weeks of feeding, the larvae pupate inside the last larval skin. Adults appear in seven to 10 days. In the fall, adults lay eggs and die or hibernate. There can be several generations.
Special behavior: The Asian ladybird beetle is notorious for its annoying autumnal behavior of finding its way through exterior cracks into homes to hibernate in walls, attics and other protected areas, such as between storm and interior windows. Since they are harmless and do no damage, move them outside or simply leave them be.
I am not sure why it would not down load up top. so here it is
Adult wasps are black or brown, with threadlike waists and long legs and antennae.
Braconid Wasp
Why they're good: Braconid wasps have such a strong reputation as killers of pests that they are widely used in agriculture. A few adults prey on other adult insects, but most feed on pollen. It's the larvae that are extremely valuable controls of garden, farm and forest pests. Egg and larval stages of various braconid wasp species chow down on larvae, pupae or nymphs of numerous pest moths, aphids, beetles, flies, ants or other bugs.
The welcome mat: Adults love nectar-producing, small-flowered plants, such as parsley, dill, yarrow, sweet alyssum or wild carrot.
Lifecycle: In some, a female injects eggs into the host. The eggs hatch and larvae emerge to feed on the host until they pupate; in others, the female deposits one egg, which divides and develops into many larvae so tiny they can pupate within the host and emerge later as adults. In any case, happily for us, these bad-bug eaters go through this cycle several times a year.
With yellow- or black-striped bodies, adult syrphid flies resemble bees and wasps, but they don't sting.
Syrphid Fly or Hover Fly
Why they're good: Imagine a pest-killing machine devouring enormous numbers of aphids, up to 400 during this stage.
The welcome mat: These "flower fly" adults favor nectar-rich blooms and are among your garden's most efficient pollinators. Attract them with wild carrot, yarrow, dill and sweet alyssum.
Lifecycle: Several hundred eggs are possible per female though midsummer. The larvae, which hatch out in two to three days, feed voraciously for two to three weeks, then pupate on nearby foliage or in the soil below. Adults emerge in about two weeks. This can recur six or seven times per year.
Adult lacewings are bright green with small heads, long antennae and long, translucent, vein-laced wings; some species have large golden eyes.
Green Lacewing
Why they're good: As with most garden "police" insects, the lifecycle is the secret and the law enforcement is all in the larval stage. Larvae, often called "aphid lions," are among the most efficient predators of aphids. They also prey on the eggs and immature stages of small, soft-bodied insects such as mealybugs, thrips, spider mites and leaf-hoppers.
The welcome mat: Adults feed on honeydew, pollen and nectar. Attract them with nectar-producing flowers and weeds.
Lifecycle: During spring, females lay oval eggs attached to foliage by long, thin filaments. These hatch in three to five days. For the next three weeks or so, each larva feeds on 200 or more adult insect pests (or their eggs) and then pupates for about a week. Take a break from your gardening to do the math: 200 eggs per female and 200 insect pests per larva equal the potential elimination of 40,000 pests in a season by one adult female!
Ground beetles, 3/4" to 1" long, are known for their speed and strong jaws. Adults are black, blue-black, brown or reddish, usually with an iridescent sheen.
Ground Beetle
Why they're good: A pest killer in two stages of its lifecycle, this beetle enjoys snails, slugs, cutworms, gypsy moth larvae, root maggots, tent caterpillars, Colorado potato beetle larvae and other pests that spend a stage of their lifecycle in the soil. Larvae feed on other ground larvae and insect eggs; one grub can eat at least 50 caterpillars.
The welcome mat: Ground beetles hang out in gardens, crop fields, orchards and woods. Provide stone pathways or patches of white clover, or leave a log to decay. They thrive under cover.
Lifecycle: In spring adults emerge and lay eggs in the soil. Larvae feed for several weeks, then pupate in the soil. Adults are able to live two to three years.
About 1/2" long, adult soldier bugs are black-speckled yellow or brown bugs. They are shield-shaped with spinelike shoulders.
Spined Soldier Bug
Why they're good: Another two-stage pest killer, the spined soldier bug effectively targets more than 100 insect pests, including caterpillars and grubs of gypsy and night-flying moths, Mexican bean and Colorado potato beetles and sawflies. It too has earned a place in the ranks of commercially available pest controllers, especially in the control of tent caterpillars. An adult uses its proboscis to pierce prey and then suck out the body fluids. On the downside, they sometimes will eat beneficial insects and occasionally their own young. Nymphs begin voracious feeding when 4 to 5 days old.
The welcome mat: Spined soldier bugs gravitate to gardens and crop fields. Give them a perennial bed for needed cover.
Lifecycle: Eggs are laid on leaves in spring. Nymphs reach adulthood in six to eight weeks. Adults live for about five to eight weeks. Look for one or two generations per year.
A diminutive 1/4" long, adult ladybird beetles' shells are hard and usually red or yellow with black spots or black with red or yellow spots.
Ladybird Beetle (Ladybug)
Why they're good: Both larvae and adults feed on aphids, the former devouring hundreds during development and the latter consuming thousands. Also favored are thrips, spider mites, mealybugs, soft scales, whitefly and a wide variety of other soft-bodied, plant-eating insects. By summer's end they may eat pollen.
The welcome mat: To attract ladybugs, provide pollen- and nectar-rich flowers and leave the wild blooms of dandelions, wild carrot and yarrow. Only two ladybug species — the Mexican bean beetle and the squash beetle — are plant-eating pests.
Lifecycle: Eggs are laid in the spring among prey populations, such as aphids, and are white or yellow, oval shaped and often deposited in clusters. They hatch in three to five days. After two to three weeks of feeding, the larvae pupate inside the last larval skin. Adults appear in seven to 10 days. In the fall, adults lay eggs and die or hibernate. There can be several generations.
Special behavior: The Asian ladybird beetle is notorious for its annoying autumnal behavior of finding its way through exterior cracks into homes to hibernate in walls, attics and other protected areas, such as between storm and interior windows. Since they are harmless and do no damage, move them outside or simply leave them be.
I am not sure why it would not down load up top. so here it is
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