Sacha wrote in :

On 2011-07-25 17:45:23 +0100, rbel said:

On Mon, 25 Jul 2011 17:29:53 +0100, Jake Nospam@invalid wrote:

On Mon, 25 Jul 2011 16:23:07 +0100, mogga
wrote:

We have a lot of ladybirds on our allotment site!

Can't do any weeding or digging without seeing them. (Yes I am moving
them out of the way!)

Mind you I saw three newts whilst digging some spuds up this week too!


Any suggestions for cheap ideas for ladybird overwintering places?

(Yes I am thinking of winter already! )

A decent wood pile will offer winter homes for ladybirds and a lot
more beneficial bugs, especially if, when building it, you add a pile
of leaf litter in the middle. The wood offers protection and the leaf
litter warmth.

I second this advice - log piles are marvelous residences for beetles,
bugs and even bees.

rbel

I've seen exactly two ladybirds here this year, so far. And there are
lots of places for them to hide/nest/over-winter. We have log-piles, a
log store, compost heaps, a hollow tree over the lane, hundreds of
plants in flower or about to be, or just going over! Maybe the birds
get to them! 'tis a mystery because we so rarely see them and would be
happy to.

I have none in my garden, even the rhubarb has blackfly and hoverflies are
having a feast. Effing man and imports will see us as a race away forever.

On the plus side I have seen lots of bees in the garden this year so we can
pollinate the goods but can't eat them because the pests get to them first.

In the past when ladybirds were common we did as suggested and had a good
quantity ie: layering logs from felled trees, and their branches over
winter. This year zilch apart from spring when we had loads of them. Where
have they gone?

Baz