How to Attract Ladybugs With Sugar

Prevent ladybugs from leaving your garden with a sugar solution.

Ladybugs are not bugs; they are beetles, and they are widely used by gardeners to control pests. These winged insects provide pesticide-free, environmentally friendly organic pest control, because they consume aphids, whiteflies, mealy-bugs, scales, mites and several other soft-bodied insects that destroy plants. Since ladybugs can fly away from your garden in search of food, you should attract them with a sugar solution to ensure that they remain in your garden. The sugar solution causes the ladybug's wings to stick and prevents them from flying away.

Things You'll Need

• Sugar
• Water
• Yeast
• Honey
• Bowl
• Spoon
• Spray bottle

Instructions

1. Mix 1/4 cup of white sugar, 1 teaspoon of yeast and 2 cups of warm water in a bowl. Allow this mixture to stand until it stops foaming.

2. Add 1/2 teaspoon of natural honey to this solution and mix until it forms a syrupy consistency.

3. Pour the solution into a bottle. Spray and sprinkle it on ladybugs and plants.

Tips & Warnings

• You can also prevent ladybugs from leaving your garden by spraying them with a mixture prepared from equal quantities of a sugar-based soda like Coke or Pepsi.

• Prepare and apply the sugar solution on a weekly basis becaue as it tends to wear off after a week.

References

• Crafty Gardener: Gardeners Love Ladybugs
• Everything-Ladybug: Ladybug Pest Control
• Ladybug Life Cycle: How Ladybugs Can Help Your Garden
• Planet Natural: How Lacewing and Ladybug Food
• Golden Harvest Organics: Beneficial Insects

Resources

• March Biological Control: Ladybugs