Beneficial insects for the garden

Insects can be the flower growers best friend particularly predators which help manage pests.  These are my top 6, but there are more. Whatever you do, don't spray or squash them! Take a look at the photos below for reference.

  1. Ladybirds and their  larvae feed almost exclusively on aphids.  Did you know the larvae can eat up to 5000 aphids a day?

  2.  Green Lacewing are just that, their long transparent veined wings extend beyond their pale green bodies. Both the adults and larvae eat aphids and insect eggs by the bucket load.

  3. Parasitic wasps do not sting (and don't really look like a wasp) they lay eggs inside other pests (including aphids). Disgustingly, the larvae then eat their hosts. Did you know they are produced on an industrial scale and released in greenhouses and fields as pest control?.

  4. Centipedes are yellow or brown and have 1 pair of legs per segment they hunt slugs and other pests on or below the soil surface.

  5. Common wasp hunt caterpillar and other pests to feed their grubs

  6. Hoverflies get confused with wasps because they look similar.  But they are harmless! Their larvae are hungry predators eating aphids and other pests.

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Garden tips in August