Beneficial Insects
The following insects are extremely important in a butterfly garden. They will keep your garden well balanced with no use of pesticides that harm Butterflies and Bees. You may already have some of these insects in your yard right now! They will help your plants grow and reward you with beautiful blooms for you and the Butterflies to enjoy. Call us today to schedule a ‘at home’ consultation.
Armored Scale Parasitoid Aphytis melinusalso known as “The Golden Chalcid,” is used to prevent and manage low-infestations of various armored scales. These yellow-gold, 1.2 mm.mini-wasps are best used to tackle and maintain minor to heavy infestations of several armored scale species. And, if established, they can adequately protect a planting for a season or, perhaps, more in certain situations.
Aphid Predatory Chrysoperla Species Green Lacewingsalso known as green lacewings — are aggressive aphid predators that have an appetite for other soft-bodied pests as well.
The 2 cm. female adults, being nomadic, actively seek out colonization’s of aphids. Mated females, when they find these groupings, will lay their 1 mm. light green eggs which are perched atop 1 cm. long filaments, amongst the aphids — up to 200 of them. The eggs hatch into tan-colored, alligator-like larvae, which grow to 8 mm. and are extremely voracious feeders which will go right to work on the aphids and each other if there is not enough food. They can consume 100 aphids or more! The life-span of these predators is roughly 30 days in their immature stages, then less than 2 months as adults. The predacious larval stage lasts roughly 15-20 days.
Larvae stage, are nocturnal predators and very opportunistic. They can tackle a great number of aphid species. Moreover these predators may eat outside of their aphid-preference diet to enjoy other soft-bodied pests: scale insect immature stages, including long-tailed and other mealybug species, whiteflies, and others, especially certain insect eggs.
Mealybug Predator Cryptolaemus montrouzierialso known as “Crypts” or “Mealybug Destroyers” and the name says it all.
They are ladybug beetles. Unlike their relative, though, these beetles are not wild-collected.
Crypts, with their shiny black body and dull-orange head and thorax, definitely prefer to dine on mealybugs. They can clean up large populations. However, as most beetles are very opportunistic and will eat pests other than mealybugs: other scale insects, insect eggs, etc. With mealybugs these beetles have proven themselves more than worthy.
