For people who want to grow more food with less work. 🌱 This is my weekly newsletter loved by 38,000+ subscribers—here's what one of them had to say: "These are not the regular run-of-the-mill garden-based emails. You actually touch on more unusual tidbits that encourage me to keep growing and learning."
the mistakes most people make with ladybugs 🐞
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When there's an aphid infestation, the first thing I usually see recommended (for people who want a natural method of pest control) is to buy ladybugs. And while I'm all for biological pest control (I wrote about green lacewings in yesterday's email), releasing store-bought ladybugs into your garden is rarely effective. Research has shown that 95% of released ladybugs fly away within 48 hours, and the rest are gone within 4 to 5 days. That's a whole lot of wasted effort and money if you ask me! The problem is that ladybugs, by nature, are migratory insects and will constantly travel in search of food. If you don't have enough aphids to sustain their appetites, you'll pretty much be paying for them to visit all your neighbors' yards. I constantly see people make the same mistakes when they introduce ladybugs to their garden, but you can avoid them. Find out how to attract ladybugs and get them to ACTUALLY stick around to do their job. And if you're on the fence about whether you should spend money on live ladybugs, please read this first. Seasonal tipsP.S. Follow my helpful tips to ensure your ladybugs actually stick around to do their job. P.P.S. Aphids and other pests appear on different crops under different conditions from year to year, but do you have a reliable way to track it all? With my Ultimate Garden Diary, you can record what they are, where they appeared, and how you managed them. This printable garden journal, logbook, and recordkeeper works for all kinds of gardens. Just mix and match the pages you need! |
Garden Betty
For people who want to grow more food with less work. 🌱 This is my weekly newsletter loved by 38,000+ subscribers—here's what one of them had to say: "These are not the regular run-of-the-mill garden-based emails. You actually touch on more unusual tidbits that encourage me to keep growing and learning."