Where do you see bugs in the garden on a scale of 1-10? When you see a bug, do you go crazy and start to worry? Bugs in the garden are not all bad, some bugs are good bugs for the homestead. Some bugs like ladybugs are carnivores and protect your plants. Their diet primarily consists of the dreaded aphid. Growing certain plants in your garden will attract beneficial insects.
So when you see an insect, look it over, and take a photo if possible. Research it so you know whether it is a good guy or bad for your garden. You can search places like this: The BugWood Insect Images, Agricultural Research Service Image Gallery, or any sites maintained by university entomology departments. These will help you know what to do if you need to take action.
Slugs

Slugs are not good bugs. Did you see the leaves of your plants being eaten and a trail of slime left behind? They are easily killed, though. You can put out a shallow dish of beer and overnight they will crawl in and drown. Refill this each night. You can create a little home for toads and they might take care of them for you. You can also sprinkle diatomaceous earth around the area.
Birds also like to eat slugs. I find that if I have a bird feeder near my garden all year around to draw the birds to combat them, these birds tend to stick around my yard more. That way, the birds can be helpers when the bugs come to call. This year I am contemplating making or buying a birdbath. If you want to sneak out and pull them off and throw them in some soapy water you’ll need to be out at twilight looking for the slugs.

Cutworm
These cutworms are caterpillars that will devastate your plants in a matter of not much time. If you touch them, they will curl into a “C” shape. These caterpillars are small and only around 2″ long and be colored gray, green, yellow, or brown.

These pesky critters live in the soil and can invade newly planted seedlings. Some organic ways to protect your new plants could be to place toilet paper tubes around them or aluminum foil. If you have some bran or cornmeal, you can leave out a small bowl of these, it will kill the worms.
Stink Bug
Some bugs we know like crickets, Japanese beetles, tobacco/tomato hornworms, the potato beetles, but did you know that the stink bug eats your plants as well? I just thought they were annoying to humans when they fly around in your house and sound like they are a bee or wasp! Here’s what one looks like if you didn’t know.

I am from Nebraska, where I don’t remember these being such a pest. Now that I reside in Ohio, they are everywhere! I just learned recently how destructive they can be in the garden and I was shocked. I don’t recall ever hearing about them. They are an invasive species brought here from Asia. The only known solution that is organic is the Diatomaceous Earth. This will continue to work against the wretched varmit as long as it’s dry.
Good Guys!
Green Lacewings

These insects are interesting in that the adult and the larvae eat bad bugs. They enjoy such things as aphids, scale insects, caterpillars, whiteflies, and thrips. There is also another group that is brown but it is lesser known. You will not see these good guys if you use broad-leaf chemicals. The only way to attract them to your garden is by interplanting plants that flower in with your vegetables. The adults will eat the pollen and the larvae eat the pests. You can also leave a shallow container of water nearby because they need water near them or they will leave and go somewhere that has both nectar and water.
You can purchase some lacewings and release them into your garden if you want to be really proactive.
Lady Bugs (Beetles)

Ladybugs are not bad bugs, they are the savior of your garden. You can even purchase some from some websites and bring them into the garden manually. They are very voracious eaters of aphids, mites, and mealybugs. I didn’t know this, but the lady bugs’ larvae eat the pests as well.
To attract ladybugs to your garden you could plant several different plants such as carrots, yarrow, cilantro, and dill. When I say carrot, I don’t mean carrot seeds, I mean go to the store and find carrots that might have some green on them and then plant them whole carrot and all. The flowers that come up from them are enticing to the little guys. Same thing with the Dill and Cilantro, you will just want these to go to seed. That’s the way the ladybugs like them. They also like Stattice (Sea Lavender) and Yarrow, but Yarrow is very invasive, so stick them in pots around your garden next to Cruciferous veggies or peppers.
Minute Pirate Bug

Ok, guys! This is the one! This is the one that you want in your garden! It will eat everything. It is not picky. They prey on mites, thrips, aphids, and other small insects. They overwinter in leaves, twigs, and bark. In the fall they might bite people as flowers and pest insects die, but the bite is only an irritation.
If you are concerned about being bitten by these bugs, take heart, they don’t like the cold. Work outside on cooler days.
To Sum it up…
There will always be an assortment of bugs in your garden. Such is the circle of life. Attract more beneficial and hopefully your bad bugs will be controlled naturally. The less toxic chemicals you use on your property, the more beneficial bugs will be around.
Here is a project that might be fun to do with your kids or grandkids to help beneficial bugs survive and stick close to your garden. It is called a Ladybug Hibernation Hotel. Try this one out if you are good with tools. Ladybug Feeder. If I can peg my husband down, we might be making some of these this spring. You can buy them on Amazon as well, but if you are trying to save money like me, you might want to DIY it.

UPDATE: I left an area of my garden untouched so the ladybugs can overwinter in it. Try it and see if it works!
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So, what are your worst garden bug enemies? How do you combat bad garden bugs? If you have any questions or comments, let us know down below. We would love to hear from you.
Blessings!
Kimberlee
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Grasshoppers have been so terrible in our area the last few years! They completely destroyed some much of our garden two years ago. The old timers in the area are saying they tend to go in cycles.
Jen,
Wow! That is terrible. I am sorry to hear that. Hope you can find something that helps.
Blessings!
Kimberlee
It’s super important to know the garden needs good bugs! Thanks for another great post. I look forward to your next one!
Kristin,
You are most welcome! Thanks for joining us!
Blessings!
Kimberlee
I didnt know there were so many varieties of lady bugs. I had thought some of those were bad! 🙈 glad I read this. Thanks!
Amanda,
You are most welcome. Just make sure that you take photos if you have any infestations. Some of these lady bugs may not be local to your area. Make sure they are not Asian Beetles.
Blessings!
Kimberlee
Hi Amanda!
This picture of the ladybugs are from all over the world, just make sure you take photos and verify that the ladybugs are in fact good ones. We may not have all of these colors in the US. I was surprised too!
Blessings!
Kimberlee