Environmental Horticulture Posted April 1997 Attracting and maintaining a population of beneficial insects are important to managing insect pests in your garden with a minimum of pesticide sprays. Tiny parasitoid wasps are aggressive beyond their size when it comes to pursuing aphids and caterpillars. Lacewing larvae and ladybug larvae and adults make inroads on aphid populations.
Ground beetles prey on a variety of ground-dwelling pests.
These various beneficial insects consume large numbers of pest insects, but their diets are not limited to other insects. In fact, many of the beneficial species have periods in their life cycles when they survive only on nectar and pollen. Therefore, planting a variety of insectary plants will ensure an adequate supply of nutrients to keep beneficial insects going strong. Insectary plants also include those plants that provide shelter for beneficial insects, another critical requirement. At one time, hedge rows that separated one field or garden from the next provided an ample supply of insectary plants to feed and shelter a variety of beneficial insects.