As far as we gardeners are concerned, with insects there are the good guys and the bad guys. It might not be very politically correct of us, but there it is. Like knights to the queen, some insects are born plant protectors and some see our gardens as a veritable smorgasbord. Insects such as the Colorado potato beetles, snails, slugs, aphids, cabbage worms, and coddling moths are just a few on the “Insects Least Wanted” list, while beneficial insects that are the pollinators and predators are on certainly on the “Insects Most Wanted” list. Predatory beneficial insects won’t eradicate every bad insect in the garden, but they take care of more than enough to balance out the equation quite enough to establish beautiful, healthy plants a only a few munched-on leaves. With these natural soldiers on our side, you can eliminate (or drastically reduce) the use of potentially harmful synthetic pesticides. Beneficial insects fall into two categories: pollinating and predatory. The pollinators such as honey bees, Blue Mason bees (and other native bee species), butterflies, moths, etc make it possible for the garden to produce a vegetable bounty. However, the predatory insects are the dudes with the heavy artillery and diligently destroy the bugs that devour your garden. Your best bet is to invite as many beneficial insects from both classes into your garden as possible. But for now, let’s focus on the predators.
Meet the Predators
Learn to recognize the players on your team players, people. Not all of them will be super models — you’ll want to know the difference between friend and foe. You don’t want to accidentally wipe out your own troops! Beneficial insect images are online, in organic gardening books, field guides, and your local master gardener’s office. Depending on the species, many of these predatory insects will double as pollinators in your garden, too. This isn’t an exhaustive list by any means. For more information on local beneficial insects contact your local Cooperative Extension office.
Assassin Bug
Assassin bug. These predators prove that you don’t have to be good-looking to get the job done right. What they lack in attractiveness they more than make up for in appetite and speed. Favorite meals include Colorado potato beetle, cabbage worms, aphids, tomato hornworms, cucumber beetles, cutworms, Japanese beetle, caterpillars, and more.
Dragonfly by Christian Fischer
Dragonfly and damselfly. Adult dragonflies and damselflies are tenacious predators. As carnivorous grown-ups, they’re both superior hunters-of-the-skies and snatch their prey in mid-air. They’re also one of the fastest insects in the world. As nymphs (young) living in the water, they have insatiable appetites for water insects such as mosquito larva.
Green Lacewing
Green lacewing. Also called the aphid lion, these predators use a pair of curved mandibles (jaws) to harpoon aphids and suck the life out of them. They also eat other soft-bodied insects such as mites, mealybugs, spider mites, whiteflies, scale, and thrips. The adult lacewing is a pollinator. Their kids are tenacious, too; green lacewing larva can eat 60 aphids per hour.
Ground Beetle
Ground beetle. Pretty shells, large mandibles, and a voracious appetite pretty much describe ground beetles. With a tendency to hide under plant debris in the ground, you may not notice them, but at night you can be sure they’re on the hunt.
“Hoverfly (2518651956)” by allen watkin from London, UK – Hoverfly. Licensed under CC BY-SA 2.0 via Wikimedia Commons.
Hoverfly. Also called syrphid flies, the larvae feed on soft-bodied pest insects such as mealybugs, aphids, maggots, and caterpillars. They resemble a little bee and have one pair of wings, yellow-striped bodies, and huge compound eyes.
Ladybug.
Ladybug. These assassins cloaked in a red Volkswagon’s clothing will each consume 5,000 aphids by the time they die. Other ladybug prey includes bean thrips, mites, chinch bugs, Colorado potato beetles, and asparagus beetles.
Ladybug Larvae.
Ladybug larvae. These little dudes are black and orange-red with a prehistoric alligator look. These spiny little creatures aren’t much to look at, but they can eat as many as 50 to 70 aphids a day.
Soldier Beetle
Leather-winged beetle or soldier beetle. These slender guys are long and orange with dark wings. If you’re roses are covered in aphids, the super-hero soldier beetles aren’t far behind! Give them a chance to come to the rescue.
Minute Pirate Bug
Minute pirate bug. They may be tiny but these predators help control small caterpillars, aphids, mites, and thrips. The move lightning fast when they spot a good meal, piercing it with their needle beaks.
Praying Mantis – Mantis Religiosa en Salto El Mono” by Elias Rodriguez Azcarate – Own work. Licensed under CC BY-SA 3.0 via Wikimedia Commons.
Praying mantis. Although mantids (plural for mantis) are big consumers that don’t always discriminate between good and evil, they certainly eat garden pests. On the other hand, they sometimes grab a good guy or two in the process.
Spider. “Spinnennetzpd”. Licensed under Public domain via Wikimedia Commons
Spiders. People are often repelled by these eight-legged creatures, but spiders are friends to the garden. After an insect is caught in a spider’s web they’re quickly wrapped up by his host and injected with a venom that liquefies the insect and the spider just sucks him down. They eat more insects in the garden than birds and they help out with pest control year-round.
Spined Soldier Bug
Spined soldier bug. Another master of the harpoon-attack, spined soldier bugs inject a paralyzing substance into their prey and feast on the juices. Potato beetles, tomato hornworms, caterpillars, saw-fly larva, and cabbage worms end up as this predator’s dinner.
Wasp
Trichogramma wasp. This wasp doesn’t bite [el] humans. It’s just one in a group of parasitic wasps that lay their eggs inside the larvae of garden pests such as cabbage worms, cutworms, and borers. Once inside, they dine on the internal organs of their host. The aphid ends up mummified as baby wasps spin a cocoon in there, pupate, and finally emerge as an adult wasp.
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