This Year, Why Not Zap Your Bad Garden Bugs with Good Ones?

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Right now, let's talk about which "biological control" insects you should look for in (and/or add to) your garden, and why they're so valuable . . . beginning with one of the most beneficial—and familiar—insects of all.

LADYBUGS

Ladybugs—or ladybird beetles-are among the most widely distributed and (for the gardener) most beneficial of all insects. The mature ladybug—with its distinctive bright red, hemispherical shell—is a familiar sight to most gardeners. The ladybug larva, on the other hand, is a bit less familiar to most folks. Look for a mostly blackish, spiny-bodied little beast with six short legs and (depending on the species) brilliant red, blue, or yellow spots.

Both the adult and the larval ladybug eat two and a half times their own weight in aphids, mealybugs, moth eggs, spider mites, and/or scale insects each and every day of their lives. (A single ladybird larva will—before it pupates into an adult beetle—consume a total of 90 mature and 3,000 juvenile scale insects.) Even more impressive is the fact that ladybirds—because they taste bad and give off a disagreeable (to other bugs) odor—aren't preyed upon by other insects.

Obviously, ladybird beetles are nice "pets" to have around!

DRAGONFLIES AND DAMSELFLIES

Any insect that can devour 40 houseflies in two hours—and the dragonfly can—is definitely a "beneficial" insect. The same goes for the damselfly, a very close relative of the dragonfly that differs only in size and repose. (Damsels are smaller and rest with their wings folded, as opposed to the dragonfly's wings-outstretched posture.)

Chances are, you'll miss seeing these swift-moving insects in action . . . because nature equipped both dragonflies and damselflies with wings to propel them at unbelievable speeds (they've been clocked at 60 miles per hour). These remarkable insects also have enormous eyes (each of which contains more than 20,000 lenses) that can spot moving objects 60 feet away . . . and long, spiny legs to aid in catching and eating their prey in flight.

Damselflies and dragonflies are predaceous in all stages of their development and feed mainly upon flies and mosquitoes . . . two of the peskiest of all insect pests. If you live near a pond where damsels or dragons thrive, consider yourself fortunate to have these fast-flying fellows around.

PRAYING MANTISES OR MANTIDS

Sometime—to really gain an appreciation for how skillfully some insects work—you should observe a praying mantis in action. This handsome insect will sit quietly poised on a stem—body erect, head bent forward, front legs meekly folded in supplication—until a grasshopper (or other prey) approaches. Then the mantid—tilting its head ever so slightly to keep a constant watch on the approaching prey—will wait patiently for the victim to move closer. And—finally!—the tall, green insect suddenly thrusts its spiny forelegs out to clasp the grasshopper in a viselike grip! From that point on, the grasshopper is doomed.

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