Attracting Beneficial Insects

mesclun_2

My Mesclun Lettuce mix (which includes Pak Choi, Mizuna, Mibuna and Mustard) went to seed pretty quick in the hot weather but instead of pulling it I let it flower. These bright yellow flowers are from the Mizuna in the mix. The flower stalks are amazingly tall and stay upright. And they attract a wonderful amount of beneficial insects like hover flies, ladybirds, lacewings, bees and other pollinators.

mesclun_1

Getting the beneficial insects into the kitchen garden is the difficult bit. Once they are here they seek out aphids, mealy bugs and mites by themselves. It can only be a good thing, right? And the yellow flowers add a great backdrop to the rows of Lettuces below.

Category: Beneficial insects, Pests & Diseases     Tagged:

5 Comments on “Attracting Beneficial Insects”

  1. I am smiling at the “hot weather” and wondering what you would be writing if you were still over here in the UK… no chance of anything bolting here at the moment ;)
    Your garden looks wonderful, btw!

  2. Mine went to seed very quickly too – the flowers are also edible :)

  3. hello x
    gosh I wish we had your sun!
    Everything looks burgeoning!(as Carol Klein would say!
    Can you still get Gardeners World over there?
    Are there any good American gardening shows?
    Nicola , cloudy,windy,cold Suffolk…

  4. Hi Nicola, Yes I watch Gardeners’ World every week on the iPlayer. I haven’t found an American show that is quite that good. I look forward to it.