Attract Beneficial Insects

• Plant flowering plants in your garden to attract beneficial insects which in turn will eat garden pests. Beneficial insects need a source of nectar besides an insect diet to survive. A good rule to go by is to look for tiny flowers. Tiny flowers feed beneficial insects which are tiny themselves. For example, sweet allyssum, an annual which has tiny purple or white flowers, attracts lace wings and parasitoid wasps. Lace wings will kill aphids and white fly. Parasitoid wasps will kill white flies. There are over 30 different types of these tiny wasps, none of which will sting humans. All need pests like white fly to lay their eggs in.
  
  Another beneficial flower is Baby Blue Eyes, which attracts the American Hover Fly. Hover Flies also consume aphids, the bane of many gardeners. Goldenrod and coreopsis are two more of the many plants that will attract beneficial insects to your garden.
  
  

Releasing Insects into the Garden

• Releasing beneficial insects such as lady bugs and lace wings is another way to get pests out of your garden. The lady bug is released into your garden as an adult and will eat aphids, white fly and other pests. The lace wing is gaining popularity in pest control. It is 1/2 inch in length with a green body and transparent wings. They generally will stay longer than adult lady bugs because they are introduced as eggs and mature in the garden. Lace wings eat aphids, white fly and mealybugs to name a few. Take the eggs and distribute them among the plants. About 1,000 eggs per 900 square feet are about right for a small garden. To get all of the beneficial insects to stay you need a lush green garden, flowers, varied planting and a source of water. If they do not have this they will go to the neighbor's yard.
  
  Some garden centers carry supplies of these beneficial insects, and you may also find sources online.
  
  

Nematodes

• Introducing nematodes is a bit easier than introducing insects. Nematodes are roundworms and are colorless and very small but they can be seen clearly with a magnifying glass. Nematodes live in the soil or bore into plants seek out up to 200 types of pests ranging from beetles to ants. They require little work to distribute. You can work them into the soil with vermiculite which is a soil extender or you can mix them into a watering can and water the plants with them. Apply them to both lawn or plants anytime of the year as long as the soil temperature is over 54 degrees. Fifty million nematodes will treat about 3,000 square feet of lawn. Nematodes can be bought for as little as $29.00 or has much as $105.00 per pack as of November 2009. You need to apply them during the morning or evening hours, avoiding the heat of the day. Water the garden or lawn prior to application.