Raise Your Garden

Musings on the Seedier Side

in Pest Control

Good bug. Bad bug. Here’s the scoop!

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Regardless of how much they might make your skin crawl, insects are not all bad. Most of them are harmless and are very good for your garden.

But we’re not denying that there are also garden insects you want to get rid of immediately.

Here’s a short guide on the bugs you want to leave alone in your garden and the bugs that should leave your garden alone.

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Image credit: Unsplash

Ladybugs

Coccinellidae, ladybird, lady beetles — they go by many names, but they’re more commonly known in the US as ladybugs.

This family of spotted beetles are widely known as beneficial insects in gardens and croplands.

Their choice of prey are agricultural pests like aphids and scale insects, so they’re very practical to have around.

To attract them, writer Melissa King recommends growing fragrant plants like angelica, marigold, dill, and fennel.

Make sure there’s enough water for lady bugs to drink and ground cover for their protection.

Damsel Bugs

Another predator to garden pests is the damsel bug. They’re brown, long, and thin, and are considered generalist predators.

This means they’re not really picky when it comes to their prey. Aside form aphids and scale insects, they also feed on moth eggs, caterpillars, cabbage loopers, and mites.

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Image credit: Unsplash

Ground Beetle

Shiny black beetles with rounded bodies are a common sight in most gardens. They like to take cover under rocks and burrow underground for protection.

Don’t shoo them away, as these nocturnal insects also eat common garden pests like ants, slugs, and maggots.

Other species even get hungry for seeds of invasive weeds like thistle. Given their choice of shelter, make sure to scatter rocks and logs to attract them. 

Wasps

They might be notorious for their painful stings, but in the right environment, wasps are actually something to be thankful for. They’re mostly harmless and only sting in defense.

Their stings are, however, deadly for small insects, and they’re considered apex predators who feed on common garden pests. They also help pollinate the garden, which is key for a healthy ecosystem.

Another thing to know about these winged creatures is their love for sugary things, which is why they tend to wander inside your home.

​To keep them out, this guide by HomeServe suggests covering trash cans, food containers, and cleaning up scraps. This ensures that they stay outdoors, where they can focus on hunting down pests. 

Spiders

There are thousands of species of spiders, and if you were to be afraid of some of them, garden spiders shouldn’t make that list.

Some spiders are harmless arachnids overall, despite their scary spindly legs. They can maintain ecological balance by eating flying insects that come their way. 

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Image credit: Pexels

Japanese Beetles

Don’t be fooled by their mesmerizing sheen; Japanese beetles have an appetite for leaves, flowers, and fruit.

Thought Co. adds that their populations increase during warm weather which spells bad news for your plants as they can completely obliterate them. 

Small holes in your crops are telltale signs of a cabbage looper infestation. If you maintain cruciferous vegetables like cabbage, broccoli, and cauliflower, you definitely want to get rid of these chunky bugs.

The good news is that you can remove them safely by hand, and without the use of harmful pesticides.

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Image credit: Unsplash

Aphids

Small, green to orange, and almost translucent, aphids are a known enemy of gardeners. They are quick and move in numbers, and they also like to suck the sap on plants.

Fallen leaves, distorted plant growth, and mold growth are signs of an aphid infestation. 

Scale Insects

Scale insects are another example of sap-sucking bugs.

The Spruce points out that they may be difficult to identify because their appearance varies in color, size, and shape. However, they’re usually rounded and look like fungal growth.

They are also difficult to remove, especially in their adult stage. It’s best to spray them with pesticide during their “crawler stage.” 

Slugs

Slugs may look harmless, and in the wild, they’re helpful in recycling organic matter. In gardens, however, they can be extremely damaging as they eat any kind of vegetation available.

​Their slimy trail attracts other slugs, which means an infestation can quickly occur. Lastly, slugs are disease carriers that can infect pets and humans alike.

What’s your favorite bug? 

Reader Interactions

Comments

  3. Phyllis Skoglund says

    Most of the bugs are harmless and are very good for your garden. This applies to bacteria as well.

    Reply

  8. Sandra McFadden says

    Thanks for sharing. I knew a few were good bugs and was unaware of some of the other bugs being bad as I have no encounters with them when I garden.

    Reply

  14. Lisa says

    I’ve had slugs for years. Never knew they could cause harm to animals and pets. Once more, you’ve taught me something I did not know.
    Thank you.

    Reply

  23. Amber Lee Kolb says

    I’ve always loved lady bugs and I’ve been told in the past they are good luck. I had no idea about the other insects in the garden, I thought they were all pests! Thank you for the awesome information!

    Reply

  26. Sandy says

    It is good to know what are the good bugs and what are the bad bugs. I appreciate all of the useful information.

    Reply

  31. Elizabeth Krill says

    I haven’t seen lady bugs around in over 8 years.
    For a while there were the yellowish ones from China that ate holes in my apples.
    Right now, the fireflies are out. I don’t put pesticides or herbicides on my lawn and that is where the eggs & babies are under the ground waiting to come out.

    Reply

  36. Shannon Shark says

    My favorite bug is the praying mantis…the carnivore of the insect world. They eat a variety of insects which can be both good and bad for a garden, being that they eat both bothersome insects and the beneficial ones. Overall, they’re good at eating the insects that irritate us such as flies and mosquitos.

    Reply

  41. Elisse says

    Japanese beetles totally destroyed our vegetable garden a number of years ago, and I put down nematodes that fall and it seemed to work- we also had a very late frost the following spring, which may have helped, too. I have seen them occasionally since, but never like before… I also recently read that planting geraniums can help, as “Japanese beetles are particularly attracted to geraniums & eat the blossoms, promptly get dizzy from the natural chemicals in the geranium, fall off the plant, and permit you to dispose of them conveniently…”! So planting geraniums close to more valuable plants which you wish to save from the ravages of Japanese beetles may help!

    Reply

  47. JeanD says

    Other than ladybugs, I really don’t want a bunch of creepy crawlers in my garden. They give me the creeps. I look for all non-toxic ways to get rid of them, but sometimes I do consider using a ‘spray’.

    Reply

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