Beneficial Garden
Bugs
Ants
Quite useful in the garden. Their nests help to ventilate the soil and
prevent acidity. They also feed on many insect pests, notably caterpillar
larvae and fruit-fly maggots. They are however not always welcome in the
garden as they are outstanding 'aphid farmers'.
Bees
You can encourage these diligent little plant pollinators to your garden by
planting the flowering shrubs and herbs they love - lavender, lemon balm,
marjoram, hyssop, basil, coriander, thyme, borage and mint.
Beetles
Just as bees should be encourage to call your garden home, it is important
not to see every beetle as an enemy. Many are beneficial garden predators
and feed on slugs, snails, caterpillars, cutworm, moth larvae and small
insect pests, even if they do chew the odd leaf of a prized rose bush as
well.
Butterflies
Although their hatched eggs - as caterpillars - will damage crops,
butterflies themselves do little harm and help to pollinate many flowers. As
with many aspects of companion planting, this is one area where the aspiring
organic garden may have to tolerate a less-than-perfect compromise.
Centipedes
Very useful in the garden. They eat caterpillars, slugs and other pests and
help break down decaying garden waste.
Earthworm
Most important to the success of a garden planned along organic principles.
They virtually create the topsoil by depositing their mineral-rich castings
back into the earth.
Earwig
They look like small beetles, the main difference being the pair of pincers
they have at the end of their body. On the positive side they eat small
insects and their larvae, particularly codling moth. On the negative side,
they can also make quite a mess of your plants.
Grasshoppers
As with so many garden pests, grasshoppers will do little damage when
present in small numbers, but if allowed to infest an area, they will eat
almost anything. They are good bird and chicken food.
Hoverflies
Don't see these odd, wasp-shaped little insects as enemies. They are to be
cherished as natural predators, and significantly contribute towards the
maintenance of a healthy garden. They prey on scale insects, mealy bugs and
mites. Their larvae eat aphids, codling moth larvae, caterpillars and slugs.
Lacewings
Nature is often quite deceptive. The aptly named lacewing, with its
beautiful, gauzy, iridescent wings and huge golden eyes is actually one of
the garden's most efficient assassins. In a single season, the larvae of
just one female lacewing - called 'aphid lions' or 'ant lions' because of
their voracious appetite - can eat over 13 million aphids in a most savage
fashion.
Ladybirds
A most useful insect to have in the garden having a prodigious appetite for
aphids, thrips and the larvae of many leaf-eating insects. A single adult
ladybird can devour up to 400 aphids a day.
Millipedes
When we come across millipedes in the garden, the common reaction is to
regard them as pests. However, unless the millipedes are particularly
troublesome don't disturb them. A few in the garden will be help, not a
hindrance, as they eat decaying matter and help aerate the soil.
Praying Mantises
A ferocious killer. Both the mantises and their larvae will kill and eat
most beetles, bugs, wasps, spiders, flies and caterpillars, helping to keep
these pests at tolerable levels. Unfortunately, they will also eat
beneficial insects, like bees and other predatory wasps.
Spiders
Spiders come in an enormous variety of shapes and sizes and, to the
uninitiated gardener, they can all be seen as pests. However, spider are
extremely useful creatures. Natural predators, they feed upon many insects
which are a nuisance to the gardener.
Wasps
Wasps need protein-rich food for their young and so often help the gardener
by eating small insect pests like slugs, codling moth larvae, thrips, stink
bugs, weevils, grubs, caterpillars and scale insects.
Bibliography
The A-Z of companion planting by Pamela Allardice. 1993. Angus and
Robertson. Back to Herb
Gardening Using Organic
Principles |
