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Get the natural gardening bug – literally
Phyllis, April
2018
There’s a growing trend towards living more sustainably, whether it’s in the way we build our homes, the type of cars we drive (or don’t) and growing our own food.
For some people, gardening segues into a desire to grow their food as organically as possible. Fortunately, Mother Nature has provided an army of critters that can do battle with garden pests on a massive scale. And while there are ways to attract beneficial insects into the garden to feast on aphids, mites, caterpillars and other plant-consuming bugs, those of us who tend to be a little more impatient can have battalions of insects winging their way to our door with the click of a mouse button.
There are four categories of beneficial insects:
Predators
These are generally larger than their prey and consume many pest insects throughout their lifetime. They are often considered general feeders, which means that they eat a variety of insect species. Unfortunately, some predators, like the voracious praying mantis, will eat just about anything in its path, including other beneficial insects. Both immature and adult predatory insects consume garden pests and some feed on pollen and nectar at various stages of their life-cycle.Parasites
These lay their eggs on or inside a host insect or egg. When their eggs hatch, the young larvae consume the host, eventually killing it. Parasitic insects are usually much smaller than their host and tend to be more insect specific than the predators. However, this is not always the case. The tiny trichogramma (wingspan: 1/50th of an inch), is a parasitic wasp that attacks the eggs of at least 200 different moth and butterfly species preventing the leaf-eating caterpillar from emerging (think cabbage loopers and corn earworms).
Pollinators
These help keep plant species growing and producing year after year. As much as 80 per cent of the world’s flowering plants require pollination to produce fruits and seeds — including two thirds of all food plants. Honey bees, butterflies, beetles, flies, and wasps are all well-known pollinators. A lesser known beneficial insect, the hover fly, not only pollinates plants in its adult stage, but feeds on soft bodied pests, like aphids, in its larval stage. [alert dismissible="false" style="alert-at-home-inverse"] TIP: Use short-lived organic sprays only as a last resort to reduce the risk of harming pollinating insects. If they’re gone, all of your best efforts spent fertilizing, pruning, watering and weeding will be wasted. Encourage or import pollinators whenever possible. [/alert]Decomposers
These guys are essential for breaking down garden waste and enriching the soil by releasing nutrients into a form that is usable by plants. They include a diverse group of soil-dwelling and wood-boring insects and are largely responsible for creating the rich, dark organic layer of soil (humus) that blankets a portion of the earth. Without these insects we would be “neck-deep” in excrement and dead plant and animal tissue. (Three cheers for the decomposers!).