Page 31 - Silver Lakes April Issue 2023

GARDENING

THE GOOD BUGS

By Elize Malan

n any garden one finds an assortment of a recent study, it was found that in areas The yellow garden spider lives in a flower.
insects and only 10% of them will cause with artificial illumination at night, this When an insect lands, the spider will bite it,
Idamage to plants. pollination is reduced by 62%. Artificial wrap it in silk, and wait for it to die before
light disorients moths and we should try to eating it.
The majority of all insects are either keep light pollution as low as possible.
beneficial or completely harmless. They can Dragonfly nymphs will eat most living
be divided into the following categories: Predators things that are smaller than they are.
These feed on other insects and if you spray
Pollinators pesticides to kill insects, the predators The beautiful sight of an early morning sky
Without these there will be no fruit and will die as well. Ladybugs, praying mantis filled with dainty dragonflies on the hunt
very few vegetables on our tables. Bees, and green lacewing larvae are ferocious are a good indication that your garden has
butterflies, flies and moths pollinate the predators. Ladybug larvae are oblong bugs a healthy ecosystem.
world’s edible crops and garden plants. less than 1cm in size and can consume 40
aphids in one hour. Mature ladybugs will Parasitoids
Depending on the weather, bees will be include mites, whiteflies and scale in their These are insects whose larvae live as
most active in the early afternoon and diets. parasites on other insects. They lay their
pesticides, if needed, should be applied eggs on or in the host; the eggs hatch
late in the afternoon at dusk. This will cause Praying mantis feast on the big ones like and the larvae feed on their host insect,
the least damage to the bee population. beetles, grasshoppers and flies. They are resulting in the death of the host. Parasitic
cannibals and will even eat each other. wasps and beetles are used as biological
Flowers of indigenous species are often control agents by organic farmers, and
specialised for pollination by long-proboscis The adult lacewing feeds on pollen but there is at least one company in South
flies. Definitely not your ordinary house fly. the larvae eat caterpillars and aphids. Africa that can provide small quantities
Plant “composite” flowers such as Yarrow, of these insects for garden use. It stands
Butterflies are primary pollinators for Goldenrod, Black-eyed Susan and Daisies, to reason that no insecticide can be used
lettuce, lavender, beans and tomatoes. provide food. on your garden plants if you want the
biocontrol methods to be successful.
The flowers of some plants open in the Spiders are not insects but are excellent
evening and become more fragrant at predators. They prefer live flying insects Although this idea sounds far-fetched,
night and they are pollinated by moths. In which are caught in their webs. we will in future have to reduce or even
eliminate our use of insecticides. Maybe
GOOD BUGS then the good bugs will get the appreciation
GOOD BUGS
they deserve!

References:
https://www.almanac.com/beneficial-insects-garden
https://www.iziko.org.za/news/why-we-need-
parasitoid-wasps-and-value-museum-collections/
https://eorganic.org/node/919
POLLINATORS
POLLINA T ORS

Tel: 012 804 1807
Fax: 012 804 0278
Web: www.garden-group.co.za
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PREDATORS Email: admin@garden-group.co.za
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INTRAMUROS APRIL 2023 | 29