Armstrong Garden Centers will be giving away one million ladybugs at all store locations to help gardeners keep a healthy garden this year.
In certain cultures, ladybugs are considered to be good luck. Put luck on your side this growing season when you visit the Armstrong store at 3226 Wilshire in Santa Monica during Ladybug Weekend, April 20 and 21.
Ladybugs are predatory insects and their main source of food is aphids, sap-sucking insects (also known as plant lice) that can stunt plant growth, turn leaves brown, and may cause plant death.
Adult ladybugs are capable of eating more than 5,000 aphids in their lifetime.
Armstrong will host a class on beneficial insects at 9 a.m. this Saturday at every store. Participants will learn which plants are best for attracting ladybugs and the following beneficial insects:
Praying Mantis: These bugs are fascinating to watch, with their slow moving, three-inch long bodies and prominent eyes. They feed on anything they can catch.
Red Worms: Their intricate digestive tract produces nutritious fertilizer known as worm castings. The tunnels they create in soil also help the aeration of plant roots.
Decollate Snails: Carnivores that feed on their cousins, the brown garden snail. Once they rid your garden of brown snails, they feed on leaf litter and other organic material, helping the composting process.
Green Lacewings: Aphid exterminators, both as larvae and adults. They also feed on mealybugs, scale spider mites, thrips, whiteflies, small caterpillars, insect eggs and larvae.
Ladybug packets will be available while supplies last and are limited to one per family. Armstrong has many free workshops throughout the year. Contact: armstronggarden.com.
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