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Beneficial Insects

 How can I attract beneficial insects to my garden to feed on some of the insect pests?

One easy thing to do is keep several shallow dishes of water and pebbles in your gardens for the beneficials to drink from. Grow a few plants that attract the beneficial insects to the garden. Adults of certain parasitic wasps and predators feed on pollen and nectar. Clovers, Queen Anne's lace and plants in the Umbelliferae family, such as dill, fennel, anise, and sea holly are good nectar sources.

Also consider plants in the daisy family, such as yarrow, aster, mum, coneflower, blanketflower, black-eyed Susan, goldenrod, coreopsis and gayfeather. Veronicas and butterflyweed are also attractive to beneficial insects.

Organ Pipe Wasps Trypoxylon politum
Also known as Mud Daubers, and Blue Devils
They are quite large, and they are not intimidated by your presence, so, if they fly around you, they might be a bit frightening but they rarely, if ever sting anyone. They just "look you over," then go about their business of pollinating, finding pest insects, building and provisioning their nests. These wasps are known for the architecture of their nests, which are tubular nests of mud, and resemble organ pipes. Actually they prefer high quality clay, and have been known to lead people to clay deposits for use by potters. They are all black and glistening blue in the sunshine. It’s a nervous sort, characterized by flicking wings every few seconds, even when it is otherwise still. Her primary reason for being is to reproduce. To do that she has to build a nest and fills it with paralyzed insect prey. She gathers mud from wherever it can be found and builds her nest in a sheltered spot, under the eaves, or inside an abandoned building. Some fear this harmless and beneficial wasp, and knock down these nests whenever they see them around their home. They lose a thing of beauty when they do. Wonderful pollinators and predators this beneficial insect should be welcomed in your garden.

Braconid parasite Apanteles sp.
The photo above shows the pupal cocoons of this parasite on the hornworm. Hornworms (Sphingidae) are parasitized by these insects. The adult wasp inserts its eggs beneath the skin of the hornworm larva. The eggs hatch and the young braconids feed on the hornworm. This parasite is an important factor in control of hornworms and is most beneficial. Should you find a hornworm in your garden with the protruding cocoons you should move the hornworm a good distance from your plants (usually tomato plants) but avoid harming it so that the Braconid parasite can develop.

Spiders: Arachnida Araneae  All spiders feed on insects and are very important in preventing pest outbreaks. The spiders normally found in gardens do not move indoors, nor are they poisonous. Permanent perennial plantings and straw mulches will provide shelter and dramatically increase spider populations in vegetable gardens.

Ground beetles: Large, long-legged, shiny blue-black or brown beetles hide under rocks and logs during the day, and are fast-moving when disturbed. They feed on slugs, snails, cutworms, root maggots, and Colorado potato beetle larvae. Attract them by providing perennial ground covers, stones, or logs. Rove beetles resemble earwigs without pincers, and feed on many insect pests and like similar conditions to ground beetles.

Fireflies  Coleoptera Lampyridae are long, soft-bodied beetles, up to ³/₄ inch long. Most larger members have light-producing organs on the end of the abdomen. Most smaller species do not. The females of some species are wingless and look like larvae. The larvae are flattened, have toothed edges, and may also glow. The firefly larvae are a ravenous predator that feeds on snails, slugs, cutworms, mites and pollen. They inject strong paralytic and digestive juices into their prey and then suck the dissolved body contents, leaving a shell. Larvae live one to two years in the soil, and in late spring build a marble-sized mud house around themselves and change to a pupa. In about 10 days, new adult beetles emerge. They emerge in early summer and remain active throughout August. The adults mostly do not feed, but may take an occasional meal of pollen or nectar.

Parasitic nematodes are microscopic worms, which seek out and then eat their way into the bodies and killing many soil dwelling pests including grubs, weevils and webworms. Nematodes have a fascinating life cycle that makes them part predator, part parasite, part pathogen, and part scavenger. Juvenile nematodes swim through damp soil to find a host and enter through an opening. Once inside, the nematode releases bacteria from its gut, which kill the host within 24-48 hours. They then feed on the dead insect tissues, grow to adulthood, mate, and lay eggs. The new juveniles, carrying the bacteria, leave the host and go in search of another victim.  Soil conditions and the method of releasing the nematodes are critical, so be sure to read and follow the directions.

Trichogramma Wasps:Hymenoptera Trichogrammatidae  are tiny wasps ¹/₁₆ inch long which prey on the eggs of more than 200 worm type pests, including borers, webworms, and many types of moth caterpillars. The wasps lay their eggs directly into the pest's eggs, killing the eggs as they hatch. The larger the host, the more eggs laid. As soon as the wasps mature, they will fly off in search of new eggs to parasitize. Different species of Trichogramma wasps are more effective against certain pests. 

Hover Flies Diptera Syrphidae Also known as flower flies or syrphid flies. Adults look like very small bees with striped abdomens; the grayish or greenish slug- like larvae have pointed heads. Flower flies are attracted to flowers to feed on nectar and pollen. The larvae feed on aphids in tight places where other good bugs can't go, and are especially helpful in early spring, before other beneficial insects are active. Hover flies also pollinate strawberries and raspberries, producing larger fruits and higher yields.

Praying Mantis also known as Praying Mantid shown below having lunch with a yellow jacket.

Camouflage is very important for the praying mantis' survival. Because they have so many enemies such as birds, they must blend in with their habitat to avoid being eaten. They have a triangular-shaped head with a large compound eye on each side. Praying mantids are the only insects that turn from side to side in a full 180-degree angle. Their eyes are sensitive to the slightest movement up to 60 feet away. They have straight, leathery forewings and very powerful jaws used for devouring its prey. They have long strong, spiny front legs held together in a praying manner. In the bodies of some species of mantis, there is a hollow chamber. Recently it has been discovered that these hollow chambers provide the mantis with a means of detecting bats, one of their most feared predators. Apparently, the mantis in flight will drastically change its flight pattern (often hurling to the ground in a spiral) when the mantis hears certain frequencies of sound.The mantis' front forelegs are held up together in a posture that looks like it is praying. These legs are equipped with rows of sharp barbs used to grasp prey. Praying Mantis eat many insects such as beetles, spiders, crickets, moths, butterfly, grasshoppers and even other smaller mantids.

Ichneumon Wasp - Hymenoptera Ichneumonidae This family of Wasps is one of the largest of all insect families and has more than 60,000 different species including many that are so tiny you can barely see them. Ichneumon wasps are extremely variable but are mostly slender with long antennae. Some species have a very long egg-laying device (ovipositor) extending from the end of the abdomen.
Ichneumons are parasitoids, the larva feeds and develops on or in a single host that it eventually kills. Some attack a wide variety of pests others are highly specific to one or a small group of host species.

Bumble Bee and Honey Bees are extremely important pollinators and can be used effectively for the pollination of a variety of crops, like tomatoes, sweet peppers, eggplants, melons, strawberries, apples, pears and cherries. Improved pollination results in larger more abundant fruits and vegetables.

Cryptolaemus Beetles resembles the Ladybug but is darker in color. They will seek out and consume mealy bugs. The eggs are usually laid on an infested plant so that the larvae can feed on the mealy bugs as soon as they hatch.

Ladybugs (Ladybird beetles) feed on aphids, chinch bugs, whiteflies, and mites, as well as many other soft-bodied insects and their eggs. There are more than a hundred ladybug or "lady beetle" species. Each adult may consume as many as 5,000 aphids during their adult life. When mature, each female will begin to lay as many as 3-4 dozen eggs each day. Upon hatching, each ladybug larvae will begin consuming 50 aphids each of the 21 days until they reach the adult stage, when the cycle begins again. That's a lot of aphids and undesirables removed from your plants.

Spined Soldier Bug also known as stink bugs, prey on many types of beetles, webworms, armyworms and other garden pests.

Decollate Snails - Attack and kill the common brown garden snail.  Also eat snail eggs and juvenile snails.

Predatory Mites - Prevent stunting and yellowing of plants by attacking red spider mites, two spotted mites, and other common mites found in greenhouses and gardens.

Leafminer Parasite: This tiny insect kills leafminer larva in the mine and lays an egg in it. The egg develops into a parasitic wasp inside the mine but outside the leafminer, using the dead larva as food.

So many other insects not listed are also very beneficial. Shown below pollinating the Delphinium 'Blue Butterfly' is the Hummingbird Moth. It is often mistaken for the Hummingbird. We have very frequent sightings of Hummingbirds and hummingbird moths at Countrybrook.

Beneficial insects have controlled insect pests since the beginning of time. Unfortunately, recent cultural practices and pesticide over-use have negatively impacted the populations.

Conclusion: Know your friend and foe: Just because an insect is on a plant doesn’t mean that it’s doing damage. Remember, it has been estimated that over 97 percent of the insects usually seen in the home landscape are either beneficial to people or innocent bystanders doing no harm. Make use of University Cooperative Extension Service personnel, online or printed Extension fact sheets, or reference books to help identify the suspect insect. Identification is important: it is often illegal and ineffective to apply a pesticide to a pest or plant that does not appear on the pesticide label. Plants that are not on the pesticide label may also be harmed by it. Proper identification may allow you to avoid the use of a broad-spectrum pesticide that kills not only the pest you’re trying to control, but many beneficials as well.

For an excellent source of garden bug photos, or submit a photo for identification visit What’s that Bug?

Don't forget there are other types of beneficials besides insects: Frogs, toads, birds, bats, and others devour large quantities of insects. Garden snakes, fox, coyote and birds of prey keep populations of moles and voles under control.

 Links: University of New Hampshire Cooperative Extension

What's That Bug?