Buying ladybugs via the internet?

[Augustmomx2]

Hello all! I am a newbie to this board, but discovered it thru the BYC board (my new babies are just 1wk old!) Anyways, I have had gardens thru the years and last year my garden was taken over by aphids. It was a complete infestation. I tried pesticides, spraying them w/the soap mixture and they still managed to ravage my garden.

I have done some research and I am thinking of buying some ladybugs over the internet and having them set-up shop in my garden Has anyone ever done this before? I am afraid I'll just be wasting my $$ and they'll go fly off someplace else. If you have ordered...who did you order them thru? Any tips or advice would be greatly appreciated. Thanks!

Mandy

 

[gumpsgirl]

I've heard of people doing it that way, but have never had to try it myself. Our local college has been conducting an experiment the past several years and they drop TONS of lady bugs by planes in our area every fall. Our house ends up totally infested with them!

 

[vfem]

I have never purchased them before... there always seems to be a lot in the yard. But when I find Aphids I know I'm even in short supply or lady bugs.

Here's one this I did buy to plant and mix in with my garden. I found out about companion planting and I am going to try to mix several plants in my garden to control bugs more organically, as we're not trying to use any chemicals.

"MARIGOLDS: (Calendula): Given a lot of credit as a pest deterrent. Keeps soil free of bad nematodes; supposed to discourage many insects. Plant freely throughout the garden. The marigolds you choose must be a scented variety for them to work. One down side is that marigolds do attract spider mites and slugs.

*

French Marigold (T. patula) has roots that exude a substance which spreads in their immediate vicinity killing nematodes. For nematode control you want to plant dense areas of them. There have been some studies done that proved this nematode killing effect lasted for several years after the plants were These marigolds also help to deter whiteflies when planted around tomatoes and can be used in greenhouses for the same purpose. Whiteflies hate the smell of marigolds. Do not plant French marigolds next to bean plants.
*

Mexican marigold (T. minuta) is the most powerful of the insect repelling marigolds and may also overwhelm weed roots such as bind weed! It is said to repel the Mexican bean beetle and wild bunnies! Be careful it can have an herbicidal effect on some plants like beans and cabbage."

Also:

"NASTURTIUMS: Plant as a barrier around tomatoes, cabbage, cucumbers, and under fruit trees. Do not plant near cauliflower. Deters wooly aphids, whiteflies, squash bug, cucumber beetles and other pests of the cucurbit family. Great trap crop for aphids (in particular the black aphids) which it does attract, especially the yellow flowering varieties. Likes poor soil with low moisture and no fertilizer. It has been the practice of some fruit growers that planting nasturtiums every year in the root zone of fruit trees allow the trees to take up the pungent odor of the plants and repel bugs. Studies say it is among the best at attracting predatory insects. It has no taste effect on the fruit. A nice variety to grow is Alaska which has attractive green and white variegated leaves. The leaves, flowers and seeds of nasturtiums are all edible and wonderful in salads!"


To find out more about plants you can add to help your other plants grow stronger and protect them from insects here's a link I found:

http://www.ghorganics.com/page2.html#CARAWAY:


If you are happy with the lady bugs, and they do well for you.... can you share a link when you get them on where you found them and what you liked for the price?

Just incase my companion planting doesn't work for me. :happy_flower

Oh yeah....

 

[Augustmomx2]

I've heard of people doing it that way, but have never had to try it myself. Our local college has been conducting an experiment the past several years and they drop TONS of lady bugs by planes in our area every fall. Our house ends up totally infested with them!

Wow, so you don't even have to worry about buying ladybugs...they're provided for free!

 

[Augustmomx2]

I have never purchased them before... there always seems to be a lot in the yard. But when I find Aphids I know I'm even in short supply or lady bugs.

Here's one this I did buy to plant and mix in with my garden. I found out about companion planting and I am going to try to mix several plants in my garden to control bugs more organically, as we're not trying to use any chemicals.

"MARIGOLDS: (Calendula): Given a lot of credit as a pest deterrent. Keeps soil free of bad nematodes; supposed to discourage many insects. Plant freely throughout the garden. The marigolds you choose must be a scented variety for them to work. One down side is that marigolds do attract spider mites and slugs.

*

French Marigold (T. patula) has roots that exude a substance which spreads in their immediate vicinity killing nematodes. For nematode control you want to plant dense areas of them. There have been some studies done that proved this nematode killing effect lasted for several years after the plants were These marigolds also help to deter whiteflies when planted around tomatoes and can be used in greenhouses for the same purpose. Whiteflies hate the smell of marigolds. Do not plant French marigolds next to bean plants.
*

Mexican marigold (T. minuta) is the most powerful of the insect repelling marigolds and may also overwhelm weed roots such as bind weed! It is said to repel the Mexican bean beetle and wild bunnies! Be careful it can have an herbicidal effect on some plants like beans and cabbage."

Also:

"NASTURTIUMS: Plant as a barrier around tomatoes, cabbage, cucumbers, and under fruit trees. Do not plant near cauliflower. Deters wooly aphids, whiteflies, squash bug, cucumber beetles and other pests of the cucurbit family. Great trap crop for aphids (in particular the black aphids) which it does attract, especially the yellow flowering varieties. Likes poor soil with low moisture and no fertilizer. It has been the practice of some fruit growers that planting nasturtiums every year in the root zone of fruit trees allow the trees to take up the pungent odor of the plants and repel bugs. Studies say it is among the best at attracting predatory insects. It has no taste effect on the fruit. A nice variety to grow is Alaska which has attractive green and white variegated leaves. The leaves, flowers and seeds of nasturtiums are all edible and wonderful in salads!"


To find out more about plants you can add to help your other plants grow stronger and protect them from insects here's a link I found:

http://www.ghorganics.com/page2.html#CARAWAY:


If you are happy with the lady bugs, and they do well for you.... can you share a link when you get them on where you found them and what you liked for the price?

Just incase my companion planting doesn't work for me. :happy_flower

Oh yeah....

Thanks for the warm welcome & the abundance of info! I may just go for it & order them

Last year, I couldn't allow my ds to just eat tomatoes off the vine like he had in years past, cuz I had sprayed so much insecticide on my plants. I hated doing that & hopefully a more natural approach will not only work better, but better for my family!

 

[simple life]

You can order ladybugs and other helpful insects online from
planet natural.
I know that you are suppose to release them at night.
I almost ordered them last year but had heard that they had been a problem a few years back in our area, I never saw them and don't remember a problem but since someone mentioned it I decided to skip it.
The other thing is that I have chickens that I let free range and since they eat every bug they can find it seemed like I would just be buying them lunch.
Good luck with it!

 

[Augustmomx2]

You can order ladybugs and other helpful insects online from
planet natural.
I know that you are suppose to release them at night.
I almost ordered them last year but had heard that they had been a problem a few years back in our area, I never saw them and don't remember a problem but since someone mentioned it I decided to skip it.
The other thing is that I have chickens that I let free range and since they eat every bug they can find it seemed like I would just be buying them lunch.
Good luck with it!

Hmmm...I have chickens that I just purchased...I don't allow them to free range since I live in a neighborhood, but I was thinking of allowing a few of them to hang-out in my garden area a few hours a night. You don't think they're feces will burn my garden?

 

[Sylvie]

I had tens of thousands of ladybugs on my house and in it. They bite when they land on me as I walk outside the door. Nasty bugs. There are so many I can't help but step on them and swat them when they land and bite and then they stink!
I think they are Asian ladybugs that the Dept of Natural Resources dropped to feed the Wild turkeys they reintroduced to the area.
In the winter I find piles of dead ones in dark corners and between the windows and storm windows and in boxes of books that are stored.
The mass infestation has happened several years in a row, usually in October during a warm stretch.
My guess is that our native ladybugs aren't so invasive.

 

[setter4]

There are over 400 species of lady bugs or ladybird beetles in north america. The asian's were released several timesin the US to control aphids in the tall trees that the native beetles didn't seem to help with. The first release was back in the early 1900's. They were never released to feed wildlife.
We just discussed them in gardening class this week and our instuctor said that buying them to release in your garden almost never works. They leave to find a more appropriate spot to live. It only really works in greenhouses.

 

[Augustmomx2]

There are over 400 species of lady bugs or ladybird beetles in north america. The asian's were released several timesin the US to control aphids in the tall trees that the native beetles didn't seem to help with. The first release was back in the early 1900's. They were never released to feed wildlife.
We just discussed them in gardening class this week and our instuctor said that buying them to release in your garden almost never works. They leave to find a more appropriate spot to live. It only really works in greenhouses.

Yeah, it didn't seem as though they would stick around...I have my chickies, so I think I'll just try with them, instead of spending more $$. Thanks so much for the input