Aphid Control with Ladybugs

Beneficial ladybugs for controlling aphids on garden plants

Aphid Control Naturally

There are several natural methods of controlling garden aphid infestations, the most popular is the beneficial ladybug or hippodamia convergens species (these DO NOT crawl into your house - more about those here). In addition to ladybugs many gardeners also seek to control aphids with green lacewing larvae, these are also provided by The Beneficial Insect Company.

Aphids, Just what are they?

Aphids are the most common garden pest insect and they feed on both garden crops and ornamental plants. There are many different species of aphids that in essence "specialize" in feeding on different types of plants, everything from pine trees to your strawberries. The basic mugshot of an aphid shows a plump, pear-shaped body and two tubes, or cornicles, which project from their abdomens.

Aphids feed in colonies, part of the reason that they are so destructive. Generally, if you see one aphid, there are lots more to be found as well. Aphid colonies may be found on young leaves, new succulent shoots, and twigs or branches. An infestation by a feeding aphid colony often causes plant leaves to curl and dry out.

As aphids feed, they leave a residue on the plants, this is often called "aphid honeydew"**. With a big enough infestation of aphids, leaves below the aphid colony begin to grow fungi from the aphid honeydew, this is black and brown in color and called sooty molds, these molds cover leaves and other objects below aphid colonies where the honeydew collects. To get rid of the sooty mold requires getting rid of the aphids.

**Aphid honeydew is one of the things an adult green lacewing will feed on. Adult green lacewings are not predators of aphids, but their larvae are.

How do I get rid of aphids?

There are lots of pesticides that will get rid of aphids, of course with enough pesticide there also chances that you could get rid of lots of other things as well. At The Beneficial Insect Company we offer beneficial insect products which are the natural or organic predators of pest insects such as the aphid. Predators that we recommend for controlling aphids are the ladybug and the green lacewing.

Ladybugs

Ladybugs are one of the insects we all have in our gardens today that are popular all over the world. (In fact, lots of our internet bandwidth is used up by people referencing our ladybug pictures on their websites.) In ancient times, ladybugs were one of the indicators of good fortune and a bountiful harvest.

Ladybugs are not native to the United States. They were first imported from Austrailia to control aphids on orange trees. Since that time, hundreds of different kinds of ladybugs have been imported to control aphids on different crops. You know those pesky asian ladybugs that get in your house every winter? - well those actually control aphids in soybeans.

Ladybugs are so popular in terms of aphid control because they eat so many! Adult ladybugs can eat up to a 1000 aphids a day and as a larvae, about half as many.

How do I release my ladybugs?

One of the problems that many people have when they release ladybugs is that they don't stay put. We like them to stay around and eat the aphids at our house and not our neighbors. There are a couple of ways to insure that ladybugs stay in your yard or garden.

• Release them before sunrise or after dark - they navigate using the sun.
• Cool them off in the fridge before releasing them, they are less active then.
• Water the garden or area where you release them, they tend to "stick" a bit better and they will drink the moisture on the leaves.

Beneficial Ladybug Prices

Beneficial ladybugs are available from The Beneficial Insect Company in liquid measurement containers starting at one bag containing about 1,500 ladybugs, 4500 ladybugs in a half-pint and about 75,000 in a gallon.