Garden Journal - Ladybirds To The Rescue !
This is just a quick follow-up on yesterday's post.
Remember I mentioned we had a major aphid problem on the calendula ? Well no more. The litle guy in the photo below is my hero.
More specifically, him and his army of mates. He's a ladybird larva, and aphids are his favourite food.
After chowing down on the aphids on the calendula, they moved on to make themselves at home among the potatoes. It's not ideal, because they'll eat some of the leaves. Did I mention these guys are voracious little omnivores ?
The photo above is the potatoes, and if you look carefully you should be able to spot at least five or six ladybird larvae, as well as a stray bluebottle.
I reckon a few potato leaves is a price I'm happy to pay to deal with aphids. They won't seriously harm the potatoes, and when they turn from larvae into full ladybirds they get even better at chasing down and dealing with unwanted pests, as well as being beautiful to look at.
This is the calendula before....
And this is it afterwards - it's mostly empty husk debris, but there are a few aphid survivors. I don't mind that, we're aiming for balance not extermination. It's the natural way to do things 🙂
All photos by me
I didn't know that insects could be useful to the plants.
!BBH
They're essential ! Bees, butterflies and hoverflies pollinate flowers, fruit and vegetables. Ladybirds and wasps reduce pests. Worms turn the earth and break down plant debris to soil. Aphids (in sensible numbers) give milk to the ants, and the ants in turn loosen the soil and generally go around tidying things up. I haven't quite worked out what use slugs and snails are, though.....
It's all part of one big ecosystem (also, yeah, I know I sound like an old hippie now....😀).
!BBH
Yeah. That's true. Each creation has its own role in the world. But tbh I really hate insects and super scared of them 😁
!BBH
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Aphids have arrived on my garlic and chives - they've almost changed colour with them! Plenty of ants but no ladybirds that I've seen.
The ants and aphids are linked; ants use aphids like we use cows. If you get a really lucky close-up shot, you can even see the ants "milking" them. I don't mind a few, but they do get out of control very fast !
Joining the ladybird larva army will bring an end to the aphid, so, I will suggest you join it as soon as possible 🤣😁
That was a beautiful photograph friend, a very good morning.
lol, I'd look very odd with a shiny red and black carapace 😁
I had to look up what they were, initially we thought they were some kind of potato pest, the larvae look so different to fully grown ladybirds.