As green industry pros, we often preach the importance of pest control for your landscape. And this blog doesn’t change or diminish the importance of keeping your home and property pest-free… mostly.
There are quite a few essential pests to keep buzzing around, especially if flowerbeds are an important feature for your landscape. Several species of insects keep buggier bugs at bay, keep plant life growing solid and vibrant, and keep the good bugs creating more good bugs.
We will take a closer look into some of the creepy crawlies we actually WANT, creeping, crawling, and flying around our space.
The Three P’s
There are three categories that the hero bugs of your landscape fall into. None of them sound like they would actually be suitable for your landscape, but surprisingly rare. Your predators, pollinators, and parasite bugs help keep your landscape fresh and new.
The predators help keep the bugs that you don’t want away from your outdoor space by doing what predators do – eating prey. The group parasites allow the predators and pollinators to have places to lay eggs that bring more predators and pollinators into the world. Your pollinators are the ones that keep your grass growing thick and lush and your flowers growing tall and vibrant.
Sweet Ladybugs
They may seem sweet, but if you thought ladybugs were in the pollinator or parasite group, you’d be incorrect! Instead, ladybugs are vicious predators that destroy aphids in your garden at an extraordinary rate. That’s right; we said it – fierce predators.
Those leaf-munching aphids don’t stand a chance against the prowess of those pretty, dotted, good luck charms. These ladies aren’t afraid to get down and dirty with the best of them and fight their way to absolute garden domination.
Spiders – We Know, We Know, Not Your Fave, But…
So, look. We saw you just shudder. Spiders tend to do that to many folks – in fact, arachnophobia often tops the list of genuine phobias worldwide. Spiders are what most people think of when you say, “creepy crawlies.” Venomous spider bites can cause serious injury, including death.
All that being said, spiders also are an incredible member of the hero cast of bugs for your landscape. We are sure it comes as no surprise that spiders are part of the predator portion of the Three Ps. And they eat EVERYTHING – except your plants – which is a good thing. All manner of insects and other spiders are prey to them, and they will keep your yard and garden nasty bug-free!
Beautiful Beetles
While they too may give you the shivers, don’t disregard our friend, the beetle. Some beetles can be really bad for your landscape – like the blister beetle or the Colorado potato beetle – however, some are excellent additions to your yard and garden.
The ground beetle is one such friend to flowers. This sturdy and bumbling predator eats all the insects that eat your plants, flowers, and grass. But, because they mainly travel the pathways of their namesake, it’s easy to mistake them for some of the less friendly bugs. So if you see these guys, let ’em trundle along in peace!
Another hard-shelled friend is the soldier beetle. This little guy will make you stand at attention as he not only acts as a fantastic predator as he does his cadence – he also pollinates as he goes marching along.
The Not So Delicate Lacewing
Another lord of the landscape is the lacewing. Like the ladybug, these bugs look fragile, delicate as the thinnest paper. But, do not be fooled, as they are pretty hardy and do amazing things for your yard and garden – in the cover of night, no less.
While you get your beauty sleep, these green fliers travel from spot to spot in your landscape, feasting on all the insects who are trying to feast on your yard. During their fast food eating, they are also pollinating all the awesome plants and flowers as they go. So when you are enjoying your morning coffee and see these lacewings, toast them with a smile and a nod.
Want a Dragon in Your Garden?
Dragons are cool. Fire or ice-breathing, flying lizards that protect their hoards, exist in stories told worldwide. Also, all over the world is less fire and ice-breathing dragon… flies. These majestic bugs, which are often very large, are excellent at keeping the bad flying bug population down.
While an actual dragon in your yard would be epic, having these warriors flying about is the next best thing.
Give Your Garden All the Buzz
We know you’ve been waiting for this one on this whole list – and it makes perfect sense as they will always belong here. Bees are so important to our environment whether they are bumbly, sweet as honey, or native to multiple nations.
Bees are the best – they float from flower to flower, pollinating the world. While some varieties of bees do sting, they only do so out of fear and are typically not aggressive towards humans for kicks. So allow them to do their thing, especially if you like our existing ecosystem.
We want to give some honorable mention to what may seem like a more dangerous variety of “pests” – the Braconid wasp. Since these guys act as parasites to the nastier bugs of your garden, they are sweeter than sting.
Smooth as Butter(flies)
Looking out your window, over your landscape, you see a lovely butterfly float charmingly by, lighting its way from bloom to bloom. You spend more time than you meant to, looking at its cute, daintiness makes its way through your flowerbed. Don’t begrudge yourself this moment – after all, that sweet insect is just doing its job – pollination and help create more oxygen for all.
The Leafy Landscaper
One of the most significant pests to bug your garden aren’t pests at all – they are your friendly neighborhood lawn care men – Premier Lawn Care. Your team at Premier are experts in what constitutes the good bugs from the bad ones and how to deal with those that are the villains of your landscape.