Bugs generally are no fun, but there are good bugs in your yard that you may want to keep around. Bugs do help to balance out the natural environment and can provide benefit to your yard, depending on the need.

Here is a list of Good Bugs In Your Yard

Beetles: There are a few hundred thousand beetles that you could get familiar with. That part isn’t so important, what is important is not to freak out about the presence of beetles in your garden or yard. Beetles are a predatory bug that feeds on insects which often feed on flowers & garden plants. You do not want those bugs in your garden, so beetles provide a pretty good hedge of protection. Example: the ladybug (aka. ladybird) is a beetle that feeds on aphids which are a very destructive bug to plants.

Bees: You probably already know this but bees are quite essential to pollination. Especially with the collapse of bee populations around the United States keeping bees is essential not just to your garden and yard, but to the food population in general. Bees are responsible for successful flowers and plant foods. Wasps are not as cute as bees, generally downright scary, but can be helpful as well as they will be predators for your yard and garden picking off destructive little insects.

Butterflies & Moths: Bees are not the only good bugs for pollinating your garden and yard. Butterflies and moths are important for pollination as well. Plus butterflies and moths can be pretty cool to look at, unlike the wasps. Another interesting plus to more butterflies and moths in your yard is that their caterpillars are a solid food choice for birds. More birds will find your home attractive if there is a large food source in caterpillars. More birds in the yard make for some pleasant views from the porch or house windows. Birds in the yard will also clean up the unhelpful bugs by feeding on more than just the caterpillars.

Spiders: Yes, scary and downright freaky sometimes, spiders are the constant predatory and will eat up bugs that feed on your garden and yard plants. Different spiders use different hunting techniques so you might want to brush up on your spider knowledge (Spiderman does not count). Orb spiders are very common sights to house landscaping because they will weave webs to catch their prey, but Jumping Spiders & Wolf Spiders are also common in our area that will stalk their prey. So, before you squash that spider, think about what type of spider it may be, it could be very helpful for you.

Dragonflies: Unlike the prior bugs that we’ve mentioned the dragonfly will feed on those airborne pests that make living outside a “pain”. Mosquitoes are a favorite food source for the dragonfly. Dragonflies will also eat the larvae of mosquitoes in standing water. They may be an annoying for you, but they are far less annoying than treating a large batch of fresh mosquito and gnat bites. If you wanted to add some more natural bug protection from mosquitoes you can also add in a bat house.