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Praying Mantis
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Predators in your yard
Attract beneficial predators and witness the balance of nature right outside your door
Mention predators and wolves often come to mind. They're the iconic half of the predator-prey equation. Beyond nature programs on television, few of us will witness a wolf pack circling a herd of elk or caribou to bring down their next meal. Parents can feel challenged in explaining these relationships to children without the real life players carrying out the drama. An answer to this challenge may be right outside your backdoor.
Common backyard bugs and amphibians already living in your garden can bring the predator-prey relationship home to kids while helping to control pests munching on your vegetables. A toad doesn't have a wolf's charisma, but it may be the top predator in your garden. Here are some tips for enhancing your backyard so beneficial predators can flourish.
Meat on the menu
Entomologists, the scientists who study insects, recommend attracting local beneficial insects rather than buying them. If you buy predatory insects, you're probably wasting your money and may create problems. For instance, lady beetles, or ladybugs, eat aphids, a common vegetable and flower pest. The ladybugs' lifecycle includes dispersal, so if you release them in your garden they'll fly elsewhere. There's also a risk of introducing an enemy of the ladybug, a small wasp, which develops inside the ladybug. It's better to invite the predators by creating healthy habitat.
One of the first steps toward a healthy environment is to reduce the use of pesticides. Chemicals often kill more than the pest species you're targeting. Frogs, toads and other non-target species can be particularly vulnerable.
Much to gardeners' chagrin, half of the predator-prey equation is easy. Simply plant what you want and pests are sure to belly up to the buffet. You'll want the beneficial predators ready to pounce on pests whenever they appear throughout the season. Since the predators might prey on pests only during certain life stages, you need to provide a diversity of food sources. Plants that produce pollen and nectar help bridge the food gap. You can intersperse certain flowers and herbs with the vegetables to diversify the predators' menu and encourage them to stay.
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Plants that attract Flowers Herbs |
The key is to think "natural." In healthy native ecosystems, many different species grow side-by-side. So mix marigolds and dill in with your tomatoes. Don't forget the vegetable half of the companion planting part of the equation. Not all flowers, herbs, fruits and vegetables want to grow together. For example, fennel and tomatoes are not on friendly terms.
Mantids, robins and slugs! Oh my!
Carnivorous mantids — praying mantis and walking sticks — look like miniature escapees from Jurassic Park. They'll gobble up a variety of insects, including locusts, beetles, tent caterpillars, spiders and aphids. Their appearance and slow movements will intrigue kids and allow for easy observation.
Many bird species eat insects at least part of the year. The family of flycatchers, including kingbirds, feed primarily on insects. Kingbirds are colonizing urban areas, and the ash-throated flycatcher, a western bird, will move into nest boxes.
If slugs are beating you to your garden bounty, birds can help here, too. Encourage robins, killdeer, blackbirds and English sparrows, all natural avian enemies of slugs.
Nearby nature
We often think of nature as being out there, far from home and certainly out of the city, but plants, insects, birds and other critters will live anywhere we give them a chance. Diversify your landscaping, add some wildlife-friendly features and keep an eye out for what's going on outside your backdoor. There may be more drama occurring than you realize. — Marilyn Stone