A balanced outlook

Last week was National Insect Week in the UK and how many of us know exactly how important these little guys are in our gardens?

Has anyone else noticed the huge amounts of ladybirds visible in the garden this year? Ladybirds are an invaluable resource for gardeners as they feed on greenfly and other aphids. If we can work with nature in the garden and encourage the beneficial wildlife there, we will enjoy much healthier and more beautiful gardens. To this end it is important that we don’t use harmful chemicals as many of them will also kill our native ladybirds and thus ensure greenfly attacks and the need to buy more insecticides for years to come.

But are the ladybirds that we have been admiring recently in larger numbers, one of our native species or are they the less desirable Harlequin or Asian Ladybird, Harmonia axyridis? This species was introduced as a control for aphids in glasshouse crop production as one beetle can eat up to 200 greenfly a day. However he has escaped into the wild and sightings have increased at an alarming rate over the last 10 years and they now threaten native species across Ireland and Europe.