Do Ladybugs Eat Grass?
- Lawns attract ladybugs if the grass is infested with small insects that ladybugs like to eat. Ladybugs love to eat aphids, mites, scale insects and the eggs of these common garden pests. Nectar and pollen-bearing flowers like dill, coriander, oregano and alyssum also attract hungry ladybugs. Ladybugs in any form will not damage lawns or gardens.
- John Acorn, author of "Ladybugs of Alberta" wrote that when ladybugs are found on lawns, they're usually hunting plant-hoppers and leaf-hoppers. These insects are just as green as the grass they hide on. Unless a magnifying glass is used, or a person has exceptional eyesight, it may seem as if the ladybugs are eating grass when they are actually eating grass-colored insects.
- Ladybugs are beneficial insects for lawns, but ants and pesticides can force them out. Ants treat many species of aphids like cows. The aphids secrete honeydew-like liquid the ants enjoy drinking. Even if there is a strong population of ladybugs in a home lawn or garden, the ladybugs cannot kill and eat any aphid protected by ants. Killing ants with pesticides may seem like a logical solution, but most pesticides that kill ants kill ladybugs, according to Colorado State University Extension. If possible, control ant infestations without spraying pesticides all over the garden. Use baits targeting the ants, or mound drenches. These target the ant colonies without exposing a majority of ladybugs to the insecticides.
- Australian gardens and lawns host the fungus-eating ladybird or Illeis galbula. These black and yellow ladybugs feed on white, powdery fungus that grows on green plants, including grass. Although they may appear to much on grass, they are only eating the fungus on the grass.