The Good Guys: Beneficial Insects in Your Garden

When most people think of insects, they think of the bad ones, but not all insects are bad! Insects are labeled as bad or ‘pests’ when they start causing harm to people or the things we care about such as plants, animals, and buildings but most insects are GOOD! In fact, of the millions of insect species found throughout the world, less than 2% are actually considered pests. There are several different ways insects can be beneficial in your garden or landscape:

• They prey on pest insects. Many species of insects eat pest insects! For example, lady beetles (ladybugs) and lacewings eat pest insects like aphids, mealybugs and whiteflies. They can help keep insect populations in balance. It’s important to recognize some of the beneficial insect species (and their different life cycle stages) that you might find in your garden. The UF/IFAS Extension bookstore has a great identification guide: Helpful, Harmful, Harmless?

• They parasitize pest insects. Some species of good insects live in or on pest insects. For example, parasitoid wasps lay their eggs into pest insects and when the wasp eggs hatch, they feed on the pest species. Here’s a really great video to show the process: Parasitic Wasps – National Geographic
• They pollinate. Many of the good insects like native bees, honeybees, butterflies and moths help us pollinate our gardens. They transfer pollen grains from flower to flower that help plants bear fruit.
• They decompose. Insects also help aerate our soils by breaking down dead material and recycling nutrients. Dung beetles are a great example! They bury and consume dung which improves soil quality.

One of the best things you can do for your garden is learn to differentiate pest insect species from beneficial ones! Just because you see an insect on your plant, doesn’t necessarily mean it is causing harm. If you see an insect, are you seeing injury to the plant? If so, what type of injury (defoliation, yellowing, leaf curling)? If you aren’t seeing injury, then you may not have anything to worry about. If you find something you’re unsure of, you can always reach out to your local UF/IFAS Extension Agent!

Pipevine swallowtail on Azalea.

Attracting and encouraging beneficial insects can really help your garden and landscape thrive. The best way to attract beneficial insects to your garden or landscape is to have lots of plant diversity. A mix of trees, shrubs, annual and perennial flowers in the landscape is best. Trees and shrubs will provide shelter for insects to overwinter, and flowers provide pollen and nectar.

Flowers in the carrot family (Apiaceae) such as caraway, coriander, cilantro, dill and fennel are attractive for parasitic wasps. Flowers in the Aster family (Asteraceae) such as blanketflower, coneflower, coreopsis, cosmos and goldenrod are attractive for larger predators like lady beetles and soldier beetles. These can be incorporated into the garden or flower beds.

For more information on attracting beneficial insects to your landscape, contact your local UF/IFAS Extension Agent!