No ladybirds!!

[bobbin]

Has any one in Sussex seen ladybirds this year? I saw one in April but nothing else!!
What's going on? I'm concerned.

[WendyC]

I've seen quite a few both in the garden and at the allotment.

[WPG]

Last year my plot was teeming with ladybirds, they were almost swarming...haven't seen a single one so far this year
(oops, I'm a bit far from Sussex!)

[Nicos]

I'm not in Sussex!
But having said that we'd seen some earlier in the year, we've not seen one at all for the past few weeks.

[Alicante]

I'm not in Sussex either!
But it is the same here in North Hampshire. I have only seen one ladybird this week on my broad beans. The beans are covered in blackfly, more so than usual. Perhaps because there are fewer ladybirds about to eat the blackfly?

[mothhawk]

Yiu don't get predators till you get pests. No good a ladybird laying eggs in a garden with no greenfly. What will her babies eat? Once you have greenfly/blackfly, after a week or so there's usually an explosion of ladybirds and lacewings. There is here anyway

[fishpond]

If it helps.
For the last few years, ladybirds and larvae have been very scarce in my garden, and last year nothing.
I got fed up with being stung by ants (I very nearly lost a Plum tree to aphids last year, I have never seen so many on a single tree), so this year I have declared war on the ants (European Red Ants).
So far I have destroyed 10+ nests and all the tree ties on my fruit trees have now got something on them which stops/kills the ants if they try to climb.
Yesterday I found 5 Lady bird Larvae on a young Apple tree that was getting a few aphids, I went to bed happy as the natural balance seems to have been restored.
Its really not funny when you could not stand still for 2 minutes or kneel down to do a little weeding and get stung.
Even the chickens were not immune.
Look up ERAnt, if you have them you will not see many (if any) crawling predators.
Note:-This decision was not taken lightly, my garden also has wasps nests, which I encourage.

[Potstubsdustbins]

I seem to have plenty of ladybirds but have seen very few flutterbyes so far this year.

[bobbin]

Mothawk I'm not convinced with the logic of the "no pests no preditor theory. Last year I left a big weed patch on the allotment as ladybirds seemed to be nesting and it and there were loads! That was long before my broad beans were planted and attracted black fly. The lady birds cleared them in a week! Then
They fell foul to bloody rust!! How annoying is that?
On the subject of black fly...everything's smothered in them ! Between the slugs, black fly,pigeons and disgusting stinky cat crap I wonder why I bother....Ah but then yesterday as I picked strawberries a bird I believe was a kite landed on my neighbours lottie looking for something on the ground, a mouse maybe, and I thought yes that's why!

[fishpond]

Kites love fresh Strawberries

[fishpond]

Mothawk I'm not convinced with the logic of the "no pests no preditor theory. Last year I left a big weed patch on the allotment as ladybirds seemed to be nesting and it and there were loads! That was long before my broad beans were planted and attracted black fly. The lady birds cleared them in a week! Then
They fell foul to bloody rust!! How annoying is that?
On the subject of black fly...everything's smothered in them ! Between the slugs, black fly,pigeons and disgusting stinky cat crap I wonder why I bother....Ah but then yesterday as I picked strawberries a bird I believe was a kite landed on my neighbours lottie looking for something on the ground, a mouse maybe, and I thought yes that's why!

Slugs = pointed stick, salt, clear the rubbish(if there is any).
Blackfly = squashing them, sprayed Rapeseed oil, predators.
Pigeons are nice, surrounded by pastry and homegrown potatoes.
Cats = loads of manure--they do not appear to like manure or smelly earth(around here anyway).
Why ? do you like gardening--it is a challenge as you have found out, it gives your brain and body a workout, you get great satisfaction and an enormous sense of well being when something(which is not very often)goes according to plan.
You never stop, learning.
You get to see mother nature at her worst and best.
P.S Please take a camera with you.

[mothhawk]

Mothawk I'm not convinced with the logic of the "no pests no preditor theory. Last year I left a big weed patch on the allotment as ladybirds seemed to be nesting and it and there were loads...

Weeds get greenfly too......

[fishpond]

I suspect the weeds were infested with aphids.

[roitelet]

Shortage of ladybirds and fluttebies here too.

[Martin H]

There was a ladybird on one of my runner bean canes this afternoon