Spring is a busy time of year for nature, and the landscape has woken up.
Plants are vigorously growing thanks to the longer, warmer days. With the rise in temperatures, insect activity is also increasing.
Pests tend to get a lot of attention from gardeners for their destructive activity, while beneficial insects and pollinators generally go through the day unnoticed. Occasionally, beneficial insects get mistaken for bad bugs. Ladybug larvae look very different from adult ladybugs, and their spikey, dark appearance can be cause for alarm.
Ladybugs hibernate over winter, spending the cooler months under rocks and leaves to wait for the warmth of spring. While hibernating, ladybugs become dormant and create a chemical in their bodies that prevents dehydration and acts as antifreeze. They huddle together for warmth while they hide from the cold. In the spring, they reemerge and start feeding and mating. Ladybugs can live up to three years.
Ladybugs lay their eggs on the backside of leaves, laying up to 50 eggs in one spot. The eggs are tiny, and each egg is smaller than the black dots on their backs. If you find a cluster of oval, golden yellow eggs on the back of a leaf, they are likely ladybug eggs.
Once the eggs hatch, the larvae emerge, and they look nothing like the cute little, red adult beetles. Larva are dark grey with orange markings and black spikes. At this stage, the ladybug larvae have huge appetites and gorge themselves on aphids, mites and other tiny insects.
If you have ladybugs in your garden, consider yourself lucky. Ladybugs are voracious eaters and will gobble up to 50 aphids a day. The larvae eat twice that amount in a day. They are incredibly valuable to organic gardeners since they keep pest populations down, while reducing the need for chemical pest control.
After a month of eating and growing, ladybug larvae attach to stems and leaves and develop cocoonlike pupas, which is the beginning stage of transforming into an adult ladybug. Once metamorphosis is complete, they emerge from the pupa fully formed beetle with wings. This whole process takes 4-6 weeks, depending on the conditions and species type.
If you have pest issues in your garden, you can purchase live ladybugs and introduce them to your garden. They are easily found online and can be shipped directly to your mailbox. Some local nurseries also stock them. Call ahead to make sure they have some. Ladybugs aren’t terribly expensive and are fun to release.
Store-bought ladybugs are normally kept refrigerated. When they are cold, they are dormant. They will keep for several weeks in a refrigerator. Keep them in the fridge at home until you are ready to release them. When they are in a cool environment, they will live longer than if you stored them at room temperature.
Allow ladybugs to warm up before releasing them and be sure that you have aphids or mites or other sources of food for your ladybugs to dine on. If there isn’t enough food, they will fly away from your garden and look for food elsewhere. Spritz your plants with water so they have some moisture to sip.
Release your ladybugs in the evening when temperatures are cooler. When you first release them, they will fly around looking for food and water. You can also offer your lady bugs a few drops of honey. Squeeze a few drops on a small bit of paper or cardboard. The ladybugs will eat the honey as a quick source of energy until they find aphids or other bugs to eat. Avoid releasing your ladybugs during the morning or afternoon to keep them from traveling away from your garden.
With 25 years of backyard gardening experience, Julie is a plant and nature enthusiast. She lives in Taylor and hosts the “Plow & Hose Organic Gardening in Central Texas” podcast and radio show that airs on KBSR, Black Sparrow Radio every Saturday and Sunday at 9 a.m.
