"paghat" wrote in message
news
In article .net, "LAH"
wrote:

I hate the *%#$@ things! I know I'll be accused of being a troll but
you
really have to be here to understand my hatred. My open front porch is
on
the south side of the house. At this time of year it is virtually
unusable
thanks to those red and black spotted menaces! Opening the front door
is
like to walking into a swarm! Actually the front door simply can't be
used
at this time of year. I wish the jerk who imported these things had to
live
with them like I do. Kill a ladybug, save an aphid!

They usually prefer western sun exposures for hibernation purposes. It is
possible to discourage them from using your porch without harming them
much:

Rig up a vaccuum cleaner (one with a hose, not beaters) with a fresh bag
in it, or a nylon stocking or loose cheesecloth in front of the bag or a
nylon stocking stuffed down the front of the hose. Vaccuum the ladybirds
into the sack or stocking, to be emptied on the property edge or nearby
woods, underneath or in the folds of a black tarp that can be permanently
located (perhaps near a compost heap or along the west edge of a tool shed
or garage), or deposit the sleepy ladies in the hollow of a rotting tree.
They want a relatively dry slightly warmed place to hibernate, & rotting
wood or west-sunned dark surfaces stay warmer than the atmospheric
temperature, so can be better attractants than porches or the insides of
walls. When they emerge next spring from out of a black tarp or tree
hollow, they will take note of where they are at, & if struck them as a
good place to have wintered, they may return to the same spot the next
winter.

Ladybirds have "scouts" which find ideal hibernation spots & somehow the
news spreads among them & they remember the spot for generations; they
arrive in autumn from a considerable distance, then emerge in spring to
scatter far from your gardens, so the person with the most ladybirds
hibernating often end up with the fewest when they're needed in spring.
When they fixate on a specific spot they'll return to it year after year
in increasing numbers, but if the mass-hibernation spot is frequently
disturbed, such as by vaccuuming them up & moving them, their "scouts"
look for safer refuge, & whether or not they continue to return to the
tarp-spot provided for them, they eventually stop using a porch because
they'll have learned it gets disrupted.

-paghat the ratgirl

--
"Of what are you afraid, my child?" inquired the kindly teacher.
"Oh, sir! The flowers, they are wild," replied the timid creature.
-from Peter Newell's "Wild Flowers"
Visit the Garden of Paghat the Ratgirl: http://www.paghat.com

I appreciate the information but I don't think you understand the magnitude
of the problem. This is a two story house and the south side is just
covered with ladybugs. Getting a vacuum up there would be pretty tricky.
If I do try this you can be sure I'm not going to let them go - gas and a
match it is! Sorry I realize this probably offends some but enough is
enough.