Flower Seeds That Attract Beneficial Insects

Planting flower seeds that attract beneficial insects will help your garden.

Beneficial insects help gardeners by pollinating crops and by preying on pests. This year, try picking up some flower seeds to attract the beneficial insects that help your garden grow naturally. According to Cornell Cooperative Extension master gardener Sally Jean Cunningham, "Beneficial insects are the reason I have so few pest woes in my garden."

Beneficial Insects

Preying mantises are predatory beneficial insects that feed on garden pests.

Common examples of beneficial insects that prey on garden pests include lady beetles, preying mantises, assassin bugs, soldier beetles, lacewings, stink beetles, robber flies, dragonflies, parasitic wasps, predatory wasps such as paper wasps and yellow jackets, tachinid flies, and spiders. Important pollinators include honey bees, bumble bees, mason bees, leafcutter bees, flies, butterflies, moths, beetles, and wasps.

Strategy

This garden provides an irresistible habitat for beneficials using flowers, stones and water.

The best way to attract beneficial insects is by creating a habitat they cannot resist using the right flower seeds. Most beneficial insects that prey on garden pests also eat pollen and thus have small mouth parts. According to Cunningham, "The best attractant flowers have (wide, open flowers which make) nectar and pollen easy to reach." To create a habitat that encourages beneficial insects to stay long term, make sure the flower seeds you choose will bloom the entire season or have overlapping blooming seasons. Include a source of water and protective cover such as shrubs, bricks and stones to enhance your beneficial insect habitat.

Herb Seeds

The blooms of flowering herbs attract beneficial insects.

Flowering herbs are fragrant and have tiny flowers suited to beneficial insects. Choose parsley and caraway for spring blooms that attract parasitic wasps and flies. For late spring and early summer blooms, choose angelica, chamomile and curry plant to entice lacewings, lady beetles, parasitic wasps, hoverflies, and other predatory insects. Anise, dill, lavender and spearmint flower in the summer provide shelter and food for lady beetles, parasitic wasps, spiders, hoverflies, bees and predatory wasps. Late-summer to fall-blooming herbs include borage, catnip and fennel.

Annual Seeds

Morning glories attract important pollinators such as bees and butterflies.

Include blooming annuals in your garden to attract a larger variety of beneficial insects. Pansies and bachelor's buttons provide much-needed early nectar for many emerging beneficial insects as winter draws to a close. Gazanias bloom in the spring and draw lady beetles and soldier bugs. Choose calendulas, cosmos, marigolds, morning glories, sunflowers, sweet alyssum and zinnias for summer to fall flowering and to entice a variety of beneficial insects such as wasps, hoverflies, bees, soldier bugs, assassin bugs, and lady beetles.

Perennial Seeds

Perennial flowers such as tansy enhance plantings that draw in beneficial insects.

Perennial flowers further enhance plantings that draw in beneficial insects. Most perennials bloom during the summer and include bee balm, golden asters, goldenrods, cone-flowers, sea hollies, tansy, and yarrow. Perennials attract a variety of insects, including bees, wasps, flies, spiders, preying mantises and other predators, parasitic insects, and pollinators.

References

• "Great Garden Companions:" Sally Jean Cunningham; 2000
• Texas A&M AgriLIFE Extension: Earth-Wise Guide to Beneficial Insects
• United States Department of Agriculture (USDA): Beneficial Insects and Insect Pollinators
• University of Florida Institute of Food and Agricultural Sciences Extension: Beneficial Insects

Resources

• University of Idaho; Beneficial Insects