Comments on: Ladybugs love aphids: using beneficial bugs to wipe out the bad

By: The life & trials of a Mock Orange. | The Dandelion Wrangler

The life & trials of a Mock Orange. | The Dandelion Wrangler — Wed, 26 Jan 2011 21:52:44 +0000

[...] my local nursery and releasing them into the garden. There is some controversy on whether this is a good or bad thing to do. I let you decide that for yourself. For me however it was the solution to my [...]

By: Lawrence

Lawrence — Tue, 05 May 2009 16:50:32 +0000

Can you tell me where I can purchase the bags of Ladybugs?

By: Frank Callo

Frank Callo — Mon, 29 Sep 2008 01:46:12 +0000

Last year I worked on a community farm. We used a mixture of white clover and old snap seeds to covercrop a bed in dire need of rest. This bed was ajacent to our tomato bed.

The cover crop grew lush and within a few weeks was crawling with aphids. We noticed that the aphids were also making their way over to the tomato bed but not doing much damage there. As it turned out, the covercrop was also crawling with lady bugs, significantly more than we were used to seeing.

It seems that the high aphid population was a reason for the lady bug population to dig in and expand. Conclusion, we believe that to attract predators you need to have enough prey to make it worth their while.

has anyone else had this or a similar experience.

By: Dee/reddirtramblings

Dee/reddirtramblings — Fri, 13 Jun 2008 12:20:06 +0000

I’ve used them before in the spring on roses. One way to get them to stay and to go to the plant I wanted helped the most was to spray it down with sugar water before releasing the bugs. I also released them at night.

Maybe yours laid eggs on the plants as a bonus. You know what a Ladybug lion looks like don’t you?~~Dee

By: Andrea McMann

Andrea McMann — Fri, 13 Jun 2008 10:57:24 +0000

Hi Andrea,

I found your blog through Natural Life magazine. It’s great! I know what you mean about too many lady bugs being creepy! I live in rural Nebraska, and every spring, oodles of ladybugs somehow find a way to crawl into my house and congregate on the ceiling. It doesn’t bother me often, but I remove them from my kitchen. I can’t think of many things more revolting than having a lady bug plop into your food!

By: Jenn

Jenn — Sun, 01 Jun 2008 19:20:52 +0000

Another recommendation I have read for releasing the ladybugs is to mist the area you are releasing them to – they are thirsty coming out of that bag and will (supposedly) fly off to look for water.

Sounds like the sheet worked well, tho.

By: Chrissy

Chrissy — Fri, 30 May 2008 16:32:47 +0000

I love the idea of benifical insects! Just remember they are lunching on the aphids in your neighborhood which means less aphids in the long run. I wonder what plants would attract lady bugs?

By: Eric

Eric — Thu, 29 May 2008 17:10:18 +0000

Thanks for the link love Andrea, and I am glad you are trying some things before giving up on your euphorbias. Perhaps a move is in order given space? There are so many things that can make a plant uncomfortable you just have to try stuff until something works. In my experience, for the plants I didn't pull, usually more water and nitrogen solved the problem, but as always, your mileage may vary. Check for ants too, they have an interesting symbiosis with aphids and may be preventing their overall demise. My aphid issues corresponded with ant issues. I solved the ant issues mostly and see fewer aphids around now. That link from max is useful. I have done the ladybug thing a couple of times but this year I noticed lots of locals already hangin' out in the garden, so no need. I often wonder if releasing them can help establish a more natural population, but I guess not. Personally I like the locals, they have cooler looking varieties of shells / wings. I have seen a few twice stabbed ladybugs in the garden too.

By: Andrea Bellamy

Andrea Bellamy — Thu, 29 May 2008 16:18:01 +0000

Nancy – LOL. I wouldn’t be at all surprised if ladybugs aren’t a delicacy somewhere in the world.

Elaine – I did notice that there were many ladybugs doing their work in the Green Streets’ traffic circle I garden, so I think you’re right about the karma thing!

Max – thanks for the link to that interesting article. The company that makes the ladybugs I bought calls itself an insectary. I wonder now if that is the case… I also wonder why the article claims, “at the end of the week you will be left with not one living ladybug” – is that just their natural lifespan, or a result of the way they are harvested and sold? More research is needed…

Wendy – thanks! No sweat. :)

By: Wendy

Wendy — Thu, 29 May 2008 15:15:43 +0000

Thanks for the review! I’ve always wondered how well ladybugs worked!