Is this goldenrod crab spider killing all the bees?

I'm actually totally sure that this goldenrod crab spider is NOT the one who's killing all the bees, but she does take a pretty picture, doesn't she?  Actually, we’ve been hearing a lot about neonicotinoids these days.  They are one of the chemicals currently in the spotlight for harming our honeybee colonies.  It also seems as though they are harming other beneficial insects and beasties above and below the soil including earthworms, butterflies, and native birds. With the evidence stacking up, it’s a good idea to learn how to live without these chemicals now. 

Neonicotinoids are systemic pesticides that combat sap sucking (like aphids) and leaf chewing insects (like beetles and caterpillars).  Neonicotinoids were introduced in the mid nineties and have quickly become a staple on farms, in nurseries, and in the home garden.  Regardless of how they are applied, they are water-soluble and infiltrate plant tissue, spreading the chemical throughout and making the plant itself toxic.  Neonicotinoids have been touted as being quite safe for humans and other mammals.  However, the chemicals do spread to all parts of the plant, including the pollen and nectar, making them dangerous to all insects that interact with the plant, not just those that eat the leaves.

Here are a few things you can do in your garden to reduce and hopefully eliminate the need for chemical insect controls.  

•  Never use chemicals prophylactically
• Interplant and use companion planting (avoid monocultures)
• Choose resistant varieties
• Rotate crops
• Keep plants happy and healthy
• Pay attention to cultural needs of plant
• Water as needed and consistently, keeping foliage dry as much as possible
• Remove any week plants
• Keep soil healthy
• Add organic matter as necessary
• Disturb soil as little as possible and only when it’s dry enough
• Keep a good layer of natural mulch (like wood chips, leaf mold, or compost) on top of your soil
• Use only organic fertilizers and pest controls
• Attract beneficial insects
•  Beneficial wasps – plant celery, parsley, and caraway
• Ladybugs – plant daisies, tansy, yarrow
• Lacewings – plant yarrow, goldenrod, black eyed susan, and asters
• Hoverflies – plant yarrow, goldenrod, black eyed susan, and asters
• Praying mantis – purchase online
• Beneficial nemetodes – keep soil healthy and can be purchased online
• Provide food and habitat by planting lots of flowering plants, offering insect hotels, bird baths, and other hidey holes
• Provide lots of habitat and natural food for native wildlife – wild birds and bats eat lots of bugs.  They can be true allies in the pest war!
• Use your poultry – ducks and chickens are voracious insect eaters (and entertaining).  Just be careful how you let them into your garden, as they’ll eat the plants as well.
• If you do have an invasion
• Mechanical controls –
• Hand-picking
• Floating row covers
• Traps – sticky traps, pheremone traps
• Pheremones (can be used to trap undesirables, or attract benneficials)
• Barrier paper (around stems to control cabbage moth)
• Barrier collars (around stems to prevent cut worms)
• Organic controls –
• To control soft bodied insects - 1T canola or vegetable oil, a few drops of dish soap in one cup of water – make sure to spray tops and bottoms of leaves
• To control mites (squirrels and deer won’t like it either) – 2T cayenne pepper, a few drops of dish soap.  Let soak overnight.  Shake frequently when spraying.
• All insects – sprinkle diatomaceous earth around gardens
• If all else fails, use organic, bee safe pesticides – look for a stamp certifying that it is organic – and use very specifically (only on infested areas) and only according to package directions.
• Neem oil, spinosad, BT, iron phosphate are all good, safe ingredients
• If, for some reason you feel you must use a synthetic pesticide, read the labels very carefully.  Look for imidacloprid, acetamiprid, dinotefuran, clothianidin, thiamethoxam and avoid all products that include these. 

I hope you find this information useful and that it helps to sway you or helps you to sway your friends, nurseries, retailers, parks departments, and anyone else who might use pesticides.  Please feel free to reproduce and share this info with everyone and anyone. 

If you have questions, feel free to contact me (Sue Day) at earthstwearddesigns@gmail.com or call me at 206.280.1425

Resources

·      http://www.xerces.org/wp-content/uploads/2012/11/NeonicotinoidsInYourGarden_Wings-Fall2012.pdf

·      http://eartheasy.com/grow_nat_pest_cntrl.htm#a

·      http://www.motherearthnews.com/organic-gardening/organic-pest-control-zm0z11zsto.aspx#axzz37TlTDv2i