Explore Plants That Attract Beneficial Insects
- Author: Saiqa Najeeb
- Last Updated On: August 11, 2023
Nature is teeming with “good bugs,” crawling and flying creatures whose diet includes pests that wreak havoc on garden plants. Include these plants in your yard’s “problem pest areas” at various intervals. Remember that a lot of chemical sprays can harm both good and bad bugs. Eliminate the use of harsh insecticides in areas where beneficial insects are present to keep the good bugs at work.
Here is a list of plants that attract beneficial insects such as lacewings, ladybugs, hoverflies, parasitic wasps, pirate bugs, big-eyed bugs, etc.
1
LACEWINGS (Chrysopa spp.)
These are gorgeous, small (about 3/4″), green or brown insects with broad, lacy wings. On the tips of inch-long stiff threads, white individual eggs have been observed to be laid. The majority of pests are largely eliminated by the larvae, which resemble tiny alligators. Because they frequently eat aphids, they are sometimes referred to as “aphid lions.” Additionally, they consume mites, other tiny insects, and insect eggs. Lacewings occasionally hang onto windows, screens, and porch lights in the evenings of spring and summer.
Plants that attract lacewings:
- Purple poppy mallow (Callirhoe involucrata)
- Angelica (Angelica gigas)
- Four-wing saltbush (Atriplex canescens)
- Fennel (Foeniculum vulgare)
- Dill (Anethum graveolens)
- Cosmos white sensation (Cosmos bipinnatus)
- Dandelion (Taraxacum officinale)
- Caraway (Carum carvi)
- Golden marguerite (Anthemis tinctoria)
- Fern-leaf yarrow (Achillea filipendulina)
- Coriander (Coriandrum sativum)
- Tansy (Tanacetum vulgare)
- Prairie sunflower (Helianthus maximilianii)
- Queen Anne’s lace (Daucus carota)
2
LADYBUGS
Gardeners can easily identify them as adults. Although they lack wings and are black with orange markings, the young larvae consume more pests than the adults. Typically on the undersides of leaves, yellowish eggs are laid in groups.
Plants that attract ladybugs:
- Golden marguerite (Anthemis tinctoria)
- Fern-leaf yarrow (Achillea filipendulina)
- Butterfly weed (Asclepias tuberosa)
- Fennel (Foeniculum vulgare)
- Dill (Anethum graveolens)
- Four-wing saltbush (Atriplex canescens)
- CA Buckwheat (Eriogonum fasciculatum)
- Queen Anne’s lace (Daucus carota)
- Common yarrow (Achillea millefolium)
- Coriander (Coriandrum sativum)
- Carpet bugleweed (Ajuga reptans)
- Prairie sunflower (Helianthus maximilianii)
- Rocky Mt. penstemon (Penstemon strictus)
- Basket of Gold (Alyssum saxatilis)
3
HOVERFLIES
They are also referred to as the flower fly or syrphid fly. Adults resemble hovering, scurrying bees that are small in size. They are non-stinging. They lay white, oval eggs that can be laid singly or in clusters on leaves. These eggs hatch into half-inch maggots that resemble caterpillars and are colored green, yellow, brown, orange, or white. To capture and eat aphids, mealybugs, and other insects, they stand up on their hind legs.
Plants that attract hoverflies:
- Four-wing saltbush (Atriplex canescens)
- Lavender globe lily (Allium tanguticum)
- Caraway (Carum carvi)
- Masterwort (Astrantia major)
- Coriander (Coriandrum sativum)
- Dwarf alpine aster (Aster alpinus)
- Dill (Anethum graveolens)
- Carpet bugleweed (Ajuga reptans)
- Feverfew (Chrysanthemum parthenium)
- Common yarrow (Achillea millefolium)
- Purple poppy mallow (Callirhoe involucrata)
- Basket of Gold (Alyssum saxatilis)
- Golden marguerite (Anthemis tinctoria)
- Fern-leaf yarrow (Achillea filipendulina)
4
PARASITIC MINI-WASPS
These include insect parasites of various types. They do not sting at all! The stingers have been modified to enable the females to lay their eggs inside the bodies of insect pests. The pests are then killed when the eggs hatch and the young start eating the pests from the inside. They leave hollow “mummies” behind after eliminating the pests.
Plants that attract parasitic mini-wasps:
- Dill (Anethum graveolens)
- Masterwort (Astrantia major)
- Lavender globe lily (Allium tanguticum)
- Caraway (Carum carvi)
- Fern-leaf yarrow (Achillea filipendulina)
- Queen Anne’s lace (Daucus carota)
- Cosmos white sensation (Cosmos bipinnatus)
- Golden marguerite (Anthemis tinctoria)
- Common yarrow (Achillea millefolium)
- Purple poppy mallow (Callirhoe involucrata)
- Coriander (Coriandrum sativum)
5
TACHINID FLIES
Parasites of caterpillars (armyworms, cabbage loopers, corn earworms, cutworms, and imported cabbage worms), beetles, beetle and fly larvae, some true bugs, squash bug nymphs, and stink bugs. Adults range in size from 1/3 to 1/2 inch. White eggs are laid on foliage or the body of the host. The pest dies as a result of the larvae’s internal parasitic feeding inside the host’s body and sucking up its bodily fluids.
Plants that attract tachinid flies:
- Golden marguerite (Anthemis tinctoria)
- CA Buckwheat (Eriogonum fasciculatum)
- Lemon balm (Melissa officinalis)
- Pennyroyal (Mentha pulegium)
- Parsley (Petroselinum crispum)
- Phacelia (Phacelia tanacetifolia)
- Tansy (Tanacetum vulgare)
- Crimson thyme (Thymus serpyllum coccineus)
6
MINUTE PIRATE BUGS (Orius spp.)
Almost any small insect or mite, such as mites, thrips, aphids, whiteflies, scales, and soft-bodied arthropods, are fed on by these tiny (1/20 inch long) insects, but in the spring they are drawn to thrips in particular.
7
DAMSEL BUGS (Nabis spp.)
Eat small caterpillars, leafhoppers, plant bugs, aphids, and other pests. They typically have a dull brown color and resemble other pest plant bugs. Compared to most species that feed on plants, their heads are typically longer and narrower (better to eat with!).
8
BIG EYED BUGS (Geocoris spp.)
The nymphs and adults of small, oval-shaped, grayish-beige bugs that measure 1/4 inch in length and have large eyes feed on a variety of small insects, including mites, insect eggs, and leaf hoppers. Football-shaped eggs with red spots are whitish-gray in color.
Plants that attract minute pirate bugs, damsel bugs, and big-eyed bugs:
- Caraway (Carum carvi)
- Cosmos “White Sensation” (Cosmos bipinnatus)
- Fennel (Foeniculum vulgare)
- Alfalfa (Medicago sativa)
- Spearmint (Mentha spicata)
- Peter Pan goldenrod (Solidago virgaurea)
- Marigold “Lemon Gem” (Tagetes tenuifolia)
The end...
If you want to welcome these beneficial insects and skyrocket the productivity of your garden, take some time to plan. This guide will come in handy for helping you select garden plants that attract beneficial insects,
By growing these plants, you can bring in a lot of beneficial insects that will help create a healthy ecosystem for your garden. Say hello to these buddies and say goodbye to lackluster harvests.
