Nearly every gardener, from the novice to the seasoned pro, knows that earthworms are to the soil what gold is to the prospector: the mother lode! Not only can worms eat their own weight in soil each day, churning up the earth and adding soil aeration, which can counteract compaction, but they actually produce natural antibiotics, which help protect plants from disease. The castings they leave behind have the ability to absorb moisture from the air and hold it in, helping plants to more readily absorb water, aiding drainage, for less runoff.
But they are not Mother Nature's only minions in the garden trenches. And like the word "minion," which usually has negative connotations, certain insects are just plain misunderstood. Take the lowliest of the low in most people's minds: Rough Stink Bugs. They're a homely gray-brown shade the color of tree bark, and irritatingly omnipresent--attaching themselves to every nook and cranny of your plants, pots and patio furniture in summer and often found flitting inside a lampshade, perched atop a picture frame, or landing on your skin any time of the year. These critters are particularly adapted to cold, so their annoyance factor seems to last all year long. And don't squash one: aside from the whole "creating bad karma" thing (which is a topic for another day!), the action spurs their little insect pores into overdrive, creating an acid-like stench that lingers on the skin for hours.
The good news is, they are even more annoying to aphids, caterpillars and beetles than they are to us, since those little plant-killing buggers are their food of choice. So, the next time a little gray stink bug lands on you, don't flinch or fling...simply cradle it gently and place it lovingly in your garden bed, where it can be a good little gardener's helper and gobble up all those plant-attacking parasites!
The favored ladybug doesn't suffer the stink bug's stigma. They're pretty! Round and red with little polka dots--a veritable cartoon character of bugs. Just about everyone knows that they're harmless, and most folks have a vague notion about them being beneficial to us and bringing us luck. Here's the scoop on these lovely little critters: seems in the olden days, farmers in Britain prayed to the Virgin Mary for help with their ailing crops. As luck would have it, just about that time, ladybugs appeared on the scene, feasting on aphids and flitting their pretty little selves flirtatiously around the flowers. Grateful gardeners of that time referred to them as "Our Lady's Beetle, which over the years got shortened to ladybug. These charmers have lived in perfect harmony in gardens ever since. In fact, an adult ladybug will eat about 5,000 aphids in its lifetime! But they can be coy, so coax them into your little piece of paradise by planting angelica and dill, which they find hard to resist. Another way to attract them? Mix ground wheat and yeast together in a water suspension (predictably called "wheast"), and spray the plant-friendly combo around the garden.
Other surprising plant pals include members of the bee family. Not just the honey bee, who's attributes are well-known, but those "other" bees--the ones we frown at, cringe around or flat-out run away from: wasps. These bad boys of the bee world have gotten a bad rap--especially the Trichogramma wasps, which prey on borers, webworms and moth caterpillars. Not only do they eat these pests, they then lay their own eggs onto the pests' eggs, killing them as they hatch! Another tiny wasp, the Passaloecus, is a solitary aphid-eating bee. They pack aphids into their nests, which are tiny little holes in wood. Prevent them from drilling into your home by placing pieces of plywood drilled with little holes in inconspicuous places.
So, don't let bugs "bug" you...work with them, and together you'll create the best garden yet! And if anyone has "beneficial bug" tips to add, please feel free to chime in!
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