Ladybug, the first sign of ... trouble?

Weedless_ 7/17/2010, 8:39 pm

So far my garden was pest and disease free, thank goodness, maybe it's just a beginner's luck, or maybe pests are staying away because they saw my yard year after year turning into a creeping jungle, and gave up on me for good... who knows. Anyway, this year I turned into a "green thumb" magically, thanks for Mel's ingenious method.
Yesterday I noticed a ladybug happily sitting on my bean bush, and was happy that I have those. Didn't occur to me that it might be there for a more practical reason than just "make Yuliya happy"...
Yep, this morning a few bean leaves turned into lacy doilies, thanks to our green aphids. Since beans are almost ripe, I am not particularly worried, and I am hoping that the ladybug I saw earlier has a large extended family and friends circle, and they will all be invited for a nice aphid barbeque dinner soon...

Garden Angel 7/17/2010, 9:49 pm

Hi,
I wonder how we attract lady bugs? I saw a special on PBS that they are farmed from places up north in the wild and people actually keep secret where they find them so they can sell them to the nurseries.
Did you notice any ants? maybe the aphids came with the ants. When we had a spot at the community gardens , we were over run with ants and some one told me to plant tansy and it did keep them away very well but it was also very invasive so what I did was just contain the tansy and cut it up and distibute it beneath the plants and it worked just as well. If not that then I used Safer insecticidal soap it biodegradble and was recomended in Organic Gardening Magazine.

**camprn** 7/17/2010, 10:03 pm

It is my understanding that most lady bug beetles do not eat foliage, however the Mexican Bean Beetle is the exception.
Ladybug, the first sign of ... trouble? Mexican_bean_beetle03

Ladybug, the first sign of ... trouble? Mexican_bean_beetle03

Weedless_ 7/17/2010, 10:06 pm

Yep, I didn't mean that ladybugs were eating foliage, I meant, they were there for a reason - namely to hunt aphids.

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Ladybug, the first sign of ... trouble?

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