Author Topic: My Favorite Insect  (Read 1980 times)

John B

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My Favorite Insect
« on: May 31, 2021, 10:59:31 PM »
I know ladybugs get all the credit, but green lacewing larvae are awesome at destroying aphid and spider mite populations around here. Got a few good pics of them in action.








JulianoGS

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Re: My Favorite Insect
« Reply #1 on: June 01, 2021, 01:53:35 PM »
Bees for sure.
Be very careful and mindful of what you sow, for whatever a man sows, that he will also reap.

Mike T

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Re: My Favorite Insect
« Reply #2 on: June 02, 2021, 06:46:17 AM »
Wish I had more good insects like that. I keep getting stuff like macleays spectre and a single insect wipes out half a small tree.

John B

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Re: My Favorite Insect
« Reply #3 on: June 02, 2021, 11:17:00 AM »
Yes, bees are the most important. Had to look up what a macleays spectre was! It's like a praying mantises evil doppelganger!

brian

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Re: My Favorite Insect
« Reply #4 on: June 02, 2021, 11:23:11 AM »
Do lacewings eat mealybugs?  I had just ordered "mealybug destroyer" type ladybugs.  I had try regular ladybugs previously for cottony cushion scale and they were useless.  I'm getting desperate, though, I have been blasting them off every day and they come back every morning.

brian

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Re: My Favorite Insect
« Reply #5 on: June 02, 2021, 12:04:34 PM »
hah my bugs just arrived.  They are all alive and they started eating mealybugs as soon as dropped them on top of some infested leaves.  Very satisfying to see them get eaten.





arc310

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Re: My Favorite Insect
« Reply #6 on: June 02, 2021, 03:30:51 PM »
hah my bugs just arrived.  They are all alive and they started eating mealybugs as soon as dropped them on top of some infested leaves.  Very satisfying to see them get eaten.





where did you get them from? mealybug infestation on my persimmons is such a PIA. i will happily stare at them eating the mealybugs for a good while. haha.

brian

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Re: My Favorite Insect
« Reply #7 on: June 03, 2021, 01:47:53 AM »
I think I got them here: https://gardeningzone.com/products/cryptolaemus-montrouzieri-for-mealybug-control

They are expensive!  I paid about a hundred bucks for 250 bugs shipped overnight.  I have a greenhouse so I have some hope they will stay put.  They can fly so I wouldn't even try using them on outdoor in-ground trees, they will likely just fly away. 

I'm skeptical they will actually solve the problem but I am sick of spraying my trees every damned day just to see new mealybugs appear the next morning.

John B

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Re: My Favorite Insect
« Reply #8 on: June 03, 2021, 02:07:49 AM »
Do lacewings eat mealybugs?  I had just ordered "mealybug destroyer" type ladybugs.  I had try regular ladybugs previously for cottony cushion scale and they were useless.  I'm getting desperate, though, I have been blasting them off every day and they come back every morning.

Nice job with those ladybugs. To answer your question, yes, lacewing larvae will eat mealybugs. They actually suck out their prey from the inside out so they can take on large prey.

You may be able to have a viable colony live in that greenhouse. Of course, you may want to wait until a later time since you just got the ladybugs.

brian

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Re: My Favorite Insect
« Reply #9 on: June 03, 2021, 11:03:33 AM »
Thanks.  I will try lacewings next time if these don't help

Francis_Eric

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Re: My Favorite Insect
« Reply #10 on: June 06, 2021, 11:29:51 AM »
I was reading something just now , and  it reminded me of your lace bugs
is it the same as the ones on golden rod ?  lace bug, Corythucha marmorata

A question I'd be interested to know the answer of.

(sorry I hurt my back today it's not easy to look into it myself !)

maybe have some goldenrod nearby to keep populations high
I know some plants like milk thistles also harbor good insects just not sure what at the moment.

https://www.britishecologicalsociety.org/an-exotic-herbivore-reinforces-competition-between-exotic-and-native-plants/

sapote

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Re: My Favorite Insect
« Reply #11 on: June 07, 2021, 06:39:24 PM »
but I am sick of spraying my trees every damned day just to see new mealybugs appear the next morning.

Do you have the master ants that herd those mealybugs like Cowboys in the West? Ants are the root cause in California.

Francis_Eric

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Re: My Favorite Insect
« Reply #12 on: June 22, 2021, 11:12:26 PM »
Yes, bees are the most important. Had to look up what a macleays spectre was! It's like a praying mantises evil doppelganger!




Debris-carrying larvae may use plant material,
prey remnants or waxy secretions to aid in camouflage as protection from predators.







I see you Like lace wings !
The ones with the white afro's
I thought I was cool like you
until I found out I been attracted this whole time to phonies   Wooly  aphids

Play that funky Music Right boy
Just saw one flying earlier like a flying snowflake.
stealing my tree's sugar this whole time.


https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zvz2ummyZhM&t=69s

I should sleep now




Wooly Aphid Movie.avi



« Last Edit: June 22, 2021, 11:17:41 PM by Francis_Eric »

brian

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Re: My Favorite Insect
« Reply #13 on: June 23, 2021, 03:28:39 PM »
but I am sick of spraying my trees every damned day just to see new mealybugs appear the next morning.

Do you have the master ants that herd those mealybugs like Cowboys in the West? Ants are the root cause in California.

No, I almost never see ants in my greenhouse, the mealybug seem to be travelling on their own.


Update - I had written the mealybug destroyers off as another expensive waste, but something interesting happened today.  I went out to hose off the mealybugs that had accumulated since I placed the predators, and I noticed a bunch of even bigger, uglier, faster mealbugs.  After I hosed a dozen off them off I realized that these are not mealybugs, but larvae of the (long gone) destroyer ladybugs!  They look very very similar to mealybugs.  So I tried to leave the remaining ones in place.  I am curious to see if they maintain a population inside the greenhouse and perhaps actually begin to keep the mealybugs in check. 



John B

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Re: My Favorite Insect
« Reply #14 on: June 24, 2021, 11:52:30 AM »
but I am sick of spraying my trees every damned day just to see new mealybugs appear the next morning.

Do you have the master ants that herd those mealybugs like Cowboys in the West? Ants are the root cause in California.

No, I almost never see ants in my greenhouse, the mealybug seem to be travelling on their own.


Update - I had written the mealybug destroyers off as another expensive waste, but something interesting happened today.  I went out to hose off the mealybugs that had accumulated since I placed the predators, and I noticed a bunch of even bigger, uglier, faster mealbugs.  After I hosed a dozen off them off I realized that these are not mealybugs, but larvae of the (long gone) destroyer ladybugs!  They look very very similar to mealybugs.  So I tried to leave the remaining ones in place.  I am curious to see if they maintain a population inside the greenhouse and perhaps actually begin to keep the mealybugs in check. 



That is rad. Hope they do keep them in check. Beneficials never get rid of the population entirely, but make it manageable. I've never had an all out mealybug infestation but I assume they are now tough then aphids.

pineislander

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Re: My Favorite Insect
« Reply #15 on: June 24, 2021, 07:24:59 PM »
I think I got them here: https://gardeningzone.com/products/cryptolaemus-montrouzieri-for-mealybug-control

They are expensive!  I paid about a hundred bucks for 250 bugs shipped overnight.  I have a greenhouse so I have some hope they will stay put.  They can fly so I wouldn't even try using them on outdoor in-ground trees, they will likely just fly away. 

I'm skeptical they will actually solve the problem but I am sick of spraying my trees every damned day just to see new mealybugs appear the next morning.

I used to live in Northern Arkansas and every year we would get hordes of ladybugs in the house in springtime.
Once when I was up in the attic I found they were hiding within the ceiling insulation getting a little warmth. I mean handfuls of them of multiple colors. Your springtime might be late enough to find some like that and use in the greenhouse.

cassowary

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Re: My Favorite Insect
« Reply #16 on: June 25, 2021, 02:22:16 AM »
The green tree ants that are prolific here, they have such courage and guts! They know they own the place but they get me to pay the taxes :/
CASSOWARYSEEDS.COM
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brian

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Re: My Favorite Insect
« Reply #17 on: June 25, 2021, 12:41:18 PM »
I had tried regular ladybugs a few times before and unfortunately they didn't seem to have any interest in eating any of the scale insects in my greenhouse, they totally ignored them.  These specific mealybug destroyer ladybugs definitely do, so I guess the type really matters.

Mark in Texas

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Re: My Favorite Insect
« Reply #18 on: June 25, 2021, 03:37:42 PM »
Do lacewings eat mealybugs?  I had just ordered "mealybug destroyer" type ladybugs.  I had try regular ladybugs previously for cottony cushion scale and they were useless.  I'm getting desperate, though, I have been blasting them off every day and they come back every morning.

Spray with Bonide All Seasons Hort. oil.  Kick up the kill with some added bifenthrin if desired.   Make sure to shake the oil well, contains an emulsifier.

brian

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Re: My Favorite Insect
« Reply #19 on: June 25, 2021, 04:30:47 PM »
I think I need to start alternating smothering agents and pure water.  I used to use soap all the time... I would spray the scale and the next day see a bunch of dead scale and be satisfied, but I think seeing the dead scale residue was masking the new scale that came right in to take their place.  Hosing them off makes it much clearer what is going on... but I always wonder if they just crawl right back up the tree

Francis_Eric

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Re: My Favorite Insect
« Reply #20 on: June 27, 2021, 01:43:33 AM »
Brian Do you use Dr. Bronner's soap or just dawn?


Here is a Fly from Pawpaw fest
Cleaning pawpaw fruit I saw a blow fly, and after a long day it brought a smile to my face
 the blow flies pollinate the fruit ---
so I wonder how he knew to visit
(most were house flies except him.)

Here is a fly that kills Insects as well Tachinid fly
it lays it's eggs on insects so if you see white dots on them you know it is their eggs,
Things in the Carrot family attract the flies so having some weeds around might not be bad.

https://drecampbell.com/benefits-of-tachinid-fly-and-how-to-attract-them/
https://bugguide.net/node/view/15740













seeking  strong bug about 6 feet tall take care of pawpaw patch isn't afraid of ladders.

Francis_Eric

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Re: My Favorite Insect
« Reply #21 on: June 27, 2021, 03:22:07 AM »
That link has what Lace wings link (under tachinid Fly article )
Does not let you copy/paste but  link below has a list as well
Quote
angelica
caraway
tansy
fern leaf yarrow
cosmos
 poppy mallow
-- also dill
coriander,
and fennel
for green lace wing bugs


http://www.farmerfred.com/plants_that_attract_benefi.html

(older link from Garden web getting rid of slugs )
https://davesgarden.com/guides/articles/view/736


Mark in Texas

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Re: My Favorite Insect
« Reply #22 on: June 27, 2021, 10:02:22 AM »
I'm skeptical they will actually solve the problem but I am sick of spraying my trees every damned day just to see new mealybugs appear the next morning.

Keep us posted.  They will stick around or live as long as they have a food supply.

If you spray with the Bonide I mentioned  the control will last for months.  Pest control is all about timing.  Start when things warm up in the spring and stuff like scale and mealybugs are in the crawler stage.

You want mealybugs?  How about this Pickering fruit?  I just rubbed them off with my hand.  Their coating leaves a waxy greasy slop on my hand.  They also coat hidden branches.  Fruit and tree quality was not compromised.  Now, mites will kick your ass, scale too.  I got lazy and didn't use hort. oil.
 


Mark in Texas

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Re: My Favorite Insect
« Reply #23 on: June 27, 2021, 10:04:26 AM »
Do you have the master ants that herd those mealybugs like Cowboys in the West? Ants are the root cause in California.

Yes they are and I get them in the greenhouse.  Amdro takes care of them quickly sprinkled in and outside.

1rainman

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Re: My Favorite Insect
« Reply #24 on: June 28, 2021, 05:34:03 PM »
Neem oil will coat the leaves and stay on for a while and keep it insect free. With a lot of plants you have to dilute the oil and not spray in the summer because the sun will hit the oil on the leaves and burn them. But with citrus they have thick leaves so you can coat them with neem oil and doesn't seem harmful. Though I would want them to get some rain or water on the leaves and slowly wash it off- don't want the leaves coated for a really long period of time which may prevent the plant from breathing. I had a thick coat of neem oil on my dwarf lemon tree leaves which stayed on through mulitple rains for over a month and killed the insects. I guess if you have beneficial insects though you might not want to spray everything.