Anyone who has been to my garden lectures knows my philosophy of the importance of appreciating the role of insects in our garden. I refer to the work by entomologists Frank Lutz (of the N.Y. Museum of Natural History) in the 1930’s and later by Gary Hevel (of the Smithsonian Institute) in the 2000's who spent years collecting insects in their NJ and Maryland backyards, respectively. Both of them found thousands of different insect species during their study period, a number which is probably astounding to most of us.
An entomologist with the USDA, Eric Grissell wrote a fascinating, informative and comical book on the topic, called Insects and Gardens. Not only is it enjoyable to read, but you will never look at an insect in your garden the same way after reading it. I highly recommend it for all gardeners. He has a new book entitled Bees, Wasps and Ants: The Indispensable Role of Hymenoptera in the Gardens which I am looking forward to reading.
The essential thought of all these entomologists is that if we learn to appreciate the insects who come to our garden (along with the myriad of other creatures above and below ground that make up our garden ecosystem) we can have them help us in our control of unwanted pests.
I have had two experiences with using insects (unwittingly) for predator control in recent years. The first time was when we were selling our house, and my beautiful honeysuckle was covered with aphids. Before I had time to buy some insecticide, the lady beetles descended on my plants and took care of the job for me.
And the second time was last week, when I noticed the new growth on my roses was covered with aphids. This time, I thought about hosing them off, a method I heard about at the Arnold Arboretum. But once again, before I had a chance to do anything, the aphids disappeared…I never saw who devoured them this time.
