You probably already know about a lot of these garden allies, but I learned a few new tidbits.
Ladybugs — This aphid loving beetle is worth its weight in gold. And they are pretty darned cute.
Lizards — Alligator lizards will search dark basements, garages and bushes for their favorite meal – black widow spiders.
Spiders — The average spider eats about 100 insects a year. He’s one of the good guys.
Toads — One toad can eat between 10,000 and 20,000 slugs, flies, grubs, cutworms or grasshoppers per year.
Bats — Besides being a valuable pollinator, bats consume large quantities of insects. A single little brown bat can catch 600 mosquitoes in one hour.
Bees — In California alone, forty–two different nut, fruit, vegetable, forage and seed crops rely directly on bee pollination.
Green Lacewings — Green Lacewings will eat mites, mealy bugs and other small insects but their favorite meal is aphids.
Ground Beetles — Ground beetles’ favorite insect meals are cutworms, grubs and root maggots. Some even love slugs and snails. To invite them into your garden, place a log or board at one end of your garden.
Hover Flies — These flies look like little flying helicopters. They are some of the garden’s greatest allies. They feed on flower nectar, which makes them excellent pollinators. Their favorite meals are aphids and mealy bugs.
Hummingbirds — These small birds consume more than half their total weight in food everyday and a big part of their diet is insects.
This all ties into last Monday’s posting about being connected to your environment with minimal negative impact. These little creatures work hard for you!
