Ladybirds?

HungryFish

I have just moved into a new house and the garden isn't done yet. When I say not done, I mean just one small step up from builders rubble. I have noticed a lot over the last couple of weeks that there are a lot of ladybirds living in the weeds. Today, when taking in my washing, I had to take 6 of them off of a duvet cover. Can anyone tell me what could be attracting them to my garden and how I can do my garden without damaging whatever it is thats attracting them. All advice appreciated.

redser7

I'm noticing tons of them around my allotment plot. Every night I spend a few minutes collecting them and bringing them onto my plot to gobble aphids.
In tandem with aphids there seems to be an explosion of ladybirds this year. I'm not sure if it is anything to do with your garden in particular. It was more the mild winter I'd say.
So I would just carry on. Hopefully they will hibernate in your garden. You can make bug hotels to encourage them to stay over the winter and breed.

https://www.google.ie/search?q=bug+hotels&tbm=isch&tbo=u&source=univ&sa=X&ei=26XWUd0lo8LsBqLagcgE&sqi=2&ved=0CDwQsAQ&biw=1280&bih=820

kylith

They're probably attracted by aphids on the weeds, so there wouldn't be much you can do about the garden without getting rid of the weeds. If your garden's big enough you could leave a wild corner and landscape the rest of it; that should provide a refuge for the ladybirds that they'll be able to sally forth from to eat the pests on your roses. You can also tie together a couple of bundles of short bamboo sticks which they can use to shelter in; or you can get similar 'bug hotels' in garden centres.

redser7

Certain flowers will attract them too. Calendula, cosmos, limanthes are easy to grow from seed. Kill two birds with one stone and sow some nice flowers??

looksee

Nooooooo not limanthes...your garden will disappear under a pretty, flower spangled, spreading mulch of invading yellow and white!

paddy147

The hollow dead stalks from alliums (cut and tied into a bundle) make for great ladybird hotels and insect hotels.

And as Kylith says,a length of bamboo cane cut down into small sections and tied into a bundle makes for a very good insect/ladybird/bee hotel too.

redser7

looksee wrote: »

Nooooooo not limanthes...your garden will disappear under a pretty, flower spangled, spreading mulch of invading yellow and white!

You have a point there But if you have a bit of wild corner insects go mad for it

HungryFish

Thank you everyone for your replies. I definitely like the sound of bug hotels. I haven't got what you might call green fingers (more like black fingers 😞) hopefully I'll eventually have a nice flowering garden full of interesting little bugs ðŸ˜႒

Snowc

A dab of loctite glue on their back will make sure they cant fly away and will make them stay in your garden.

HungryFish

Snowc wrote: »

A dab of loctite glue on their back will make sure they cant fly away and will make them stay in your garden.

Really hope that's a joke

Snowc

HungryFish wrote: »

Really hope that's a joke

Nope have being doing it for years .it does no damage to the ladybirds at all and they still eat greenfly ferociously

paddy147

Snowc wrote: »

A dab of loctite glue on their back will make sure they cant fly away and will make them stay in your garden.

Thats absolutely cruel.

They have wings for a reason.

paddy147

HungryFish wrote: »

Thank you everyone for your replies. I definitely like the sound of bug hotels. I haven't got what you might call green fingers (more like black fingers 😞) hopefully I'll eventually have a nice flowering garden full of interesting little bugs ðŸ˜႒

A length of garden/bamboo cane,some willow or some allium stalks,a secateurs,and some garden twine.

All of 2 minutes of your time and you will have made a bug hotel.:)

Snowc

paddy147 wrote: »

Thats absolutely cruel.

They have wings for a reason.

Nothing cruel about it paddy it causes no damage to the ladybirds its just like clipping a birds feathers to stop em flying.

bluecherry74

Snowc wrote: »

Nothing cruel about it paddy it causes no damage to the ladybirds its just like clipping a birds feathers to stop em flying.

No, it's more like supergluing a bird's wings to the sides of it's back to stop it from flying.