Maybe, maybe not. Did you know that some bugs can actually be beneficial for our gardens? Find out more at Truly Nolen.
Bugs, Bugs Everywhere! Can you Love a Bug?
Autumn has officially arrived. It seems that even the cooler weather has not deterred the bugs. I hate bugs! In the south, we have what they call Palmetto bugs, only the Palmetto bugs have wings to fly, but to me they are still cockroaches. Yuk! To the native Floridians, I guess calling them by the southern name of “Palmetto” makes them more acceptable to live with, but I think not. The moment I see one of these in my home, I call my bug service. It is inevitable that one of these creatures will filter in at one point or another, since they are attracted to lights, but not in my living quarters. They can just stay outside where they can fly around to their heart’s content.
While it may not be a Palmetto bug, I am sure if you have been close to any plant, whether inside or outside your home, you have seen some sort of bug, at one point of another. Most bugs are destructive as in the case of the snails that I cannot seem to get rid of in my back yard. However, there are some bugs that I can actually live with, or maybe even love. The Truly Nolen Company was gracious enough to send me some reminders of the bugs that are beneficial to have around our yards and gardens.
Truly Nolen has some great information on their website to educate their readers on the pests that are actually beneficial to our gardens such as the ladybug. Both the rubber ladybug and fake leaves remind us of some of the aphids and insects that ladybugs eat like scales, mealy bugs, leaf hoppers, mites and other soft-bodied insects. I was amazed to learn that a ladybug can consume up to 50 – 60 garden-destroying aphids and insects per day. That is quite a bit in my book. While I have not seen any ladybugs lately in my area, I am off to my family garden center to inquire whether they have any available for sale. You see, of the plants in my garden, some have been bitten by some pesky creatures. Apparently, they are eating their fill because a lot of the leaves are riddled with holes. I suspect that it might be the snails getting to my plants, and even though I have checked early in the morning, I can’t seem to catch them in the act. Consequently, I cannot remedy the situation. While the ladybugs may not remedy my snail problem, they most certainly will help with the other bugs that are present.
The fake rose that Truly Nolen sent reminds us to save our flowers with nature’s own praying mantis. I certainly could use a few of these lovely creatures in my garden as they consume moths, roaches, beetles and grasshoppers. Again, I plan on attempting to purchase some of the praying mantis at my local nursery, however, I am not very optimistic, but I do hope they have some on hand. I haven’t seen any all summer long.
The last item that I received from Truly Nolen was the plant seeds. Sunflower seeds to be exact. It is rare that we receive any frost in my area, so any time is perfect for planting these seeds. The seeds remind me that the decollate snail is a predator of plant destroying slugs and brown garden snails. Something that I definitely need in my garden to fight off those nasty garden snails. Decollates also eat old leaf mulch, but they don’t eat healthy plants. I have already planted my seeds, but won’t see any blooms for 6 to 8 weeks. I am anxious for these plants to grow!
Check out the Truly Nolen Facebook page for some fun facts about bugs and other useful information. And follow along on their Twitter and Pinterest pages, as well.
While I am still not a big fan of bugs, I do realize that there are bugs that are beneficial to our gardens. Let Truly Nolen help you with your bug problems.
