How To Attract Ladybugs To Your Garden

Ladybugs are probably one of the cutest little insects that most people will let crawl across their fingers. Their black dot and red background appearance have been interpreted in clothing and furniture designs, and even may be the global design leaders we didn't know we needed. They're so commonly loved that it's believed when a ladybug lands on you, the number of spots you count are the years of good luck you'll have, according to South Carolina Aquarium.

These insects continue to be great by helping to keep your garden healthy, The Real Dirt Blog says. They do this by eating little insects that are harmful to plants, such as mites and leafhoppers, and can eat about 5,000 of these plant-eating insects over the course of their entire life. In North America, there are about 450 native species of ladybug, meaning that you are bound to attract plenty of them by following a few steps.

The first step to attracting ladybugs to your garden is planting certain plants that they can land on, according to Gardening Know How. Some of these plants are Angelica, Calendula, Caraway, Chives, Cilantro, and more. Interesting enough, it would also be helpful to plant flowers specifically to attract plant-eating bugs. This way, ladybugs will be attracted to a food source. Planting marigolds and nasturtium as distractions to keep your garden safe may do the trick.

MasterClass says it's also important to provide ladybugs with water. You can do this by leaving small bowls of water or wet paper towels to entice ladybugs to land in your garden for a refreshing drink. A fun project would be to also create a ladybug house from scratch so that they have shelter from predators. All you need is a small wooden box with holes and raisins or sugar water in order to attract them inside.