How to attract beneficial insects?

[Grapefruitroop]

I would say start spreading all sort of wild flower seeds that you can find…also some N fixer like wild pea…sometimes u can find blend of medical herbs and flowers made to feed horses and other grazin animals. Neigboors horse manure is the best way to introduce many of this wild herbs seeds…
Calendulas are very easy…also shasta daysies or chamomille…
For what im understanding you want to attract with colorful flowers all sorts of Wasps and predatory flyers that are the main predators for those goddamn mites…
The only thing is that it could take time to rebuild a healty mini eco system in this way…at least a year/season…but i would consider it necessary if the full-organic-permaculture is the approach…

[Sincy]

Have you tried micronized sulfur foliar spray

[Tinytuttle]

Build a worm bin ! My worm bins always seem to have a healthy supply of naturally occurring predatory mites I them fungus gnats and other nasties seem to stay away!

[Tinytuttle]

I plan making some of these bug hotels ! “Build it and they Come!”

[zem]

Thanks for the info, i hope it will help

[zem]

i was thinking of a way to firstly collect and then possibly isolated different species each in its own container and feed them and let them populate. I want to avoid having to plant flowers myself rather maybe go to flowering fields or the woods and try collect them from there

[zem]

no please tell me more. i have some sulfur that is powdered very fine and yellow i am not sure if this is it. will the mites not just overcome it and repopulate in no time?

[zem]

Are the mites on your worm bin the same ones that eat other mites? or are they worm mites that feed on worms? The bug hotel sounds like a good idea, what kind of attractants does it need?

[Tinytuttle]

They are a predatory mite that keep things in check to the best of my knowledge I believe them to be these guys !

I have a close up in the thread “what’s in my soil “ iircc

[Tinytuttle]

@zem

what kind of attractants does it need?

No attractants needed they find them in their own .

[zem]

But there must be something in that box to feed on so they can populate right? how do i go on to build a similar box?

[Tinytuttle]

Nah it just more of a shelter/home for them to stay around the garden … there just an open boxes With a closed back . so to say filled with material one can find hanging around pieces of wood drilled in various sizes pine cones sticks tubes and various object google some pics for building ideas some are really beautiful and ornate.

[buzzmobile]

@zem

I want to avoid having to plant flowers myself rather maybe go to flowering fields or the woods and try collect them from there

For collecting in fields look into sweep nets.
https://mississippientomologicalmuseum.org.msstate.edu/collecting.preparation.methods/Insect.nets.htm

How to Collect

[Guitarzan]

I saw this in an article about making KNF inputs. I’ve never tried it myself.
Natural Insect Attractant (NIA)

Materials

1. 3 liter clean water
2. 1 liter coconut vinegar
3. 1 kilo muscovado sugar
4. Empty mineral water bottles

Procedure

Mix the sugar, water and vinegar in a basin or any available container that could accommodate the mixture.

Application

Cut out holes or vents (2 square inches) on two opposite sides of the plastic bottles.

Transfer a minimal amount of the mixture into bottles and make sure that the contents do not spill out of the vents.

Using a piece of rope or tie-wire, hang bottles from fruit trees or vineyards. For low-lying crops, pour solution in coconut shells or any bowl-like container and strategically place near plants.

[zem]

nice info thanks. I wonder if i can substitute coconut vinegar it would be very hard to come by. what is KNF?

[Guitarzan]

It’s Korean Natural Farming. It’s really a philosophy of organic gardening. One of the key aspects of it is making your own fermented plant nutrients by using local plants, and indigenous micro-organisms.

I got interested in it during a war with PM. One of the primary KNF inputs is Lactic Acid Bacteria Serum, or LABS. It really worked on the PM, so I started reading more about it. I’m making some Fermented Plant Juice, FPJ, as we speak.

There are some threads about it here on OG. Here’s one of them.

Growing on the cheap! Korean Natural Farming

Most of our money goes right into bottles of this and bottles of that once you finish setting up the perfect environment. why not start making your own? its quite easy! Im going to introduce you guys to Korean natural farming! (KNF) KNF is a way of taking from the land respectively, fermenting, and then returning to the earth. fermenting is great! Fermenting will draw from deep in the cells, compounds which are not available in raw form by proliferation of beneficial lactic acid bacteria. You…

[zem]

great info! I used powdered milk one time on PM and it worked.

[Sincy]

I found a PDF of the jadam book the other day if any wants to download it just search for jadam book PDF.

[Guitarzan]

Thanks man. I pulled down that PDF. Haven’t read it yet, but I looked through the TOC. Sounds great, thanks for sharing.

[Grapefruitroop]

@Guitarzan

One of the primary KNF inputs is Lactic Acid Bacteria Serum, or LABS. It really worked on the PM, so I started reading more about it

Its a real powerhouse of good bacterias! Defnitely important when try to restore a natural balance! I just discovered its even good in the septic tank!ha!
i wana share the pic of this shiny CheeseRock!