I need ladybugs!

Does anyone know where I can purchase ladybugs or larvae? at a local nursery or feed store? a mail order place that's in Texas? My local feed store says he only gets them in the Spring. Another member ordered some online but the shipping is high, so I was trying to see if I could avoid that. If not, I'll just have to pay.

Several nuseries carried them here; but, I don't know if they still have any. You might want to call the nurseries in your locale.

I've bought ladybugs before from Buchanan's Native Plants here in Houston. (Heights Area) I think I paid around $7. They need to be kept cool until you release them (that's what they told me, anyway), so it might be hard to find someone who will ship them to you in this intense heat.

Try calling Marshalls here in Fort Worth. They may have some, or even Green Mama's in NRH.

They were giving them away Saturday at The Natural Gardener in Austin.

Did you get me any?!?! ;) What is The Natural Gardener? Maybe they have more...

http://naturalgardeneraustin.com

They have been selling them recently at the Arbor Gate, but that's in Tomball. Unfortunately, they ran out of ladybugs at Natural Gardener before Donna got over there. I was afraid mine would die by the time I got home, but they were fine and quite happy to hop on the Mexican Milkweed and start feasting on the aphids (and hopefully start laying eggs.)

I'm jealous maggiemoo, but I think I found some. Thanks Mel, I forgot about Green Mama's having them. I called and they do, 1500 for $9. That beats shipping. I think I'll just start with one batch and make sure they stay. Little things make us gardeners so happy! :)

Isn't it funny how seeing ladybugs, lacewings or praying mantis gets us all excited?

I bought the ladybugs online from a company in California...if you're still interested I'll dig up the paperwork!

Thanks MollyO, but I did find a local place to get them. If that doesn't work I'll take you up on that.

MollyO! I have a question for you. I have been hearing rumors about things like ladybugs and walking stick.. Is it true that ladybugs don't actually eat aphids? It's the larvae that eat them? And DH's sister told us that they had walking sticks devouring their wisteria. That sounded really crazy to me, but they insisted it was true.

Ladybugs and their larvae both eat the aphids. I released 1500 of them tonight. I got just a few the other day and they were out munching today. I've read that the larvae eats more than the adult, but then read the adult actually consumes more in a lifetime. Either way, I'm happy that they eat!

I opened the little tub and put the lid down in one spot and then put the container down in another. When I went to check on the batch that was on the lid, I discovered a toad sitting there with them!! NOOO!!! So I was chasing him and tossing things at him trying to get him to understand this was NOT his dinner! I sat the lid on top of some plants, then walked back to the container and found a smaller toad looking at them!! I ran him off and then sat the bucket on top of a plant. Hopefully they climbed UP quickly!! I had never even thought about the toads!

LOL, I never thought about toads either. The ladybugs I brought back from Austin were in a brown paper lunch bag. I just inverted it and slipped it over the top of one the Mexican Milkweed heads. I checked a little later and most of the ladybugs had claimed an aphid were dining to their heart's content. For the others that were stubbornly clinging to the paper bag, I finally got them onto the leaves, where they immediately found supper. I was disappointed a few days ago when I didn't see them at all anymore, but this morning I found what looks to be ladybug larvae all over those plants! Can that be happening this quickly?

Mary Lee, If I remember correctly, MollyO said in the butterfly class that the adult ladybugs will eat about 300 aphids, their larvae about 3,000!

My bucket did say that the ones that find food and stay would soon start laying eggs. I'm hoping that's what is going to happen here too! Did you release yours at night? I watered then let them go at dusk so they wouldn't fly off. I still see them, but not near the amount that I released. I'm hoping tho that they are busy eating and I'll see an aphid decline soon. I hope my toads didn't eat them all!!

I didn't even think about watering. Oops! But I have plenty of small critter watering stations around. It was pretty much morning when I released them. Man, I didn't look into it like I should have!

I don't have any pictures of what I thought might be ladybug larvae, they went scampering around too fast! But what do you think these are? The one on the left looks like eggs of some sort, but I don't think they're butterfly eggs (wouldn't those be on the bottom of the leaf?) And the other one almost looks like a really tiny caterpillar, but I don't think it is...?

Those are Hoverfly larvae. The little green caterpillar thing is eating the aphids. They are good, but they do not eat very fast. I've got a lot of them but they just aren't enough.

Here is a pic of a ladybug larvae. They always describe them as little alligators. It's not what you would think was a ladybug.

Your ladybugs should have come with some instructions! I had read this on another thread, but it was also on my bucket. It said that they don't fly at night, so if you release them at night you will have a better chance of them sticking around. It also said that after being contained they will need water to drink. Who knew they drank water? lol

Okay, I have definitely seen some of these larvae hanging around, but now I don't think that's what I saw scurrying around at the base of the plant, in and under the mulch. Are the hoverflies a problem?

The ladybugs were given to us for free when we went to The Natural Gardener in Austin, and saw the class on butterfly gardening. They may have been giving instructions as they were passed out, but I was late getting over there and my mouth was flapping, as usual, lol!

It is sad that in PA this spring, they wanted lady bugs to die. They should bag them and sell them to us.

There was an epidemic of some kind of bug that the lady bug ate. So the government released hundreds of thousands of lady bugs. In my brothers home where it had settled, a warm day in march they were all over his home there were also alot of them that had died.

I was told there is no predator to lady bugs. They use to be called lady bird bugs
because they have an odor that causes birds not to eat them. Then they just dropped the bird out of there names.

You can be outside up there and they will come in black swarms. Now there is nothing that can be done about them. Eventually you would think they would run out of things to eat. This was SE PA.

I just found this link it tells alot about the lady bug and how many different ones there are. Just keep resding past the old farm house part first.

This message was edited Jul 25, 2005 2:18 AM

I have heard about people having massive amounts of ladybugs. I suppose that's not fun when they are swarming your doors and windows etc. I thought the same thing when I read something like this the other day, bag them and send them to us!

I have a lady bug predator, it's called a TOAD!

ilovejesus99. inthe UK and Europe they are known as ladybirds, all one word, no bug. Over there the word bug is only used for something you don't want around.
When they landed on us as kids we were taught to blow them off gently, and use the old nursery rhyme to persuade them to go away.
"Ladybird, ladybird fly away home,
Your house is on fire and your children are gone,
All except one and that's little Ann,
For she crept under the frying pan."
Carol

I saw something on Gardening by The Yard (HGTV) last year about a guy who went into the ladybug selling business when he helped a friend who had a swarm at their house. He now goes wherever people have the swarms, vacuums them up, then packs and ships!

If you all will split my airfare I will go and get a ton of them. We would never want again. Wouldn't that be great?


Blessings,
Sandy

Another reason we need a DG airbus!
:-)

I wonder if a ladybug/mantis/lacewing home business is feasible? Mmmmm.

I saw ladybugs some where on the web for 1500 of them 5.95. Sure would take alot of counting???

Me doubts they're counted one by one. They probably use some learnable estimating method.

maybe they weigh them?

How are are my babies. Are they blooming?

I bet thats how they do it!!

Your plants suffered some in the heat but, are recovering. They have been in black containers. I am thinking of painting them white with spray paint so they don't absorb so much heat. :-)

John

I read in a magazine the other day that Asian Lady beetles were released here, for something, and that when it's cold they swarm to get inside where it's warm. I guess those are the kind that need to be bagged and sold.

I don't have but a few ladybugs left. With all these aphids I can't imagine why they would leave! :(

It may be just the adults are gone. Perhaps the eggs are soon to hatch and wreak havoc on the aphids!

John you could either do that or dig a few holes and set them in the ground.

I know black draws heat, but do you think it is just the heat and any pot comba this year?

I know you are doing great. It is hard to keep things watered this year. If you want to take a few cutting feel free. That might help them too.???

:o) !! I APPRECIATE YOU......

Sandy

edited to say, set them pot and all in the ground. LOL :o)



This message was edited Jul 28, 2005 11:34 PM

I have always wondered if they would stay. I love lady bugs. I believe maggiemoo.

I wonder where they are when they are not eating?

Sandy

Well, I probably blew them all away with the water. I released the whole bucket, which was 1500 but some were dead, and saw about 5 the next day. So far I've only seen like 2 or 3 for a few days. In order to lay eggs they would have to BE here. I'm so frustrated with these horrid bugs! I'm going to wait a little bit longer and try one more bucket of ladybugs. Then...I don't know what.

"edited to say, set them pot and all in the ground. LOL :o)" (thumps head with heel of palm) Of course I knew that. I'm a college graduate!

;o)