Our tree kale unfortunately appears to have developed an aphid problem.
I secretly felt a little giddy over this scenario though because suddenly we had a great reason to buy 1,500 ladybugs to release in the garden!
We’re all about educational, non-toxic pest management in our house.
Unfortuantely the ladybugs weren’t the cure-all we were hoping for. We placed numerous ladybugs right on top of delicious aphids and, much to our horror, the ladybugs walked right by and completely ignored them:
Not the scenario I was anticipating. HOW DARE THOSE LADYBUGS IGNORE OUR APHIDS?! We bought them for a purpose, darn it. How could they not be hungry?!
I couldn’t help but vent my frustrations on twitter:
First the ladybugs skipped out on a tasty snack and then they flew the coop. Two days later, they were nowhere to be seen.
Yet here we are, a few weeks later, and our aphids seem to be disappearing. Perhaps a few ladybugs have lingered in our garden or I’ve simply been more diligent at removing infected leaves.
Regardless, the whole ladybug release experience was so much fun that we want to do the whole thing over again. I may have to take a trip down to our neighborhood hardware store and pick up a few more ladybugs.
Who can resist a practical, fascinating, eco-groovy, AND super fun home-school activity?!