I’ve been considering buying ladybugs to release in my patio to help with plant pests (mostly aphids). But I can imagine them all just flying away. So I was wondering if any of you have tried “ladybug lures” and if they work at all? They seem to be pheromone based and it sounds promising.
If I have enough aphids, they’re kind of already enough of a lure. The plan of let them run wild until the ladybugs show up only really works if they’re on mature plants that won’t die in the meantime.
But also, I have better luck keeping them around for longer if I make sure to spritz some water all over the plants every morning/evening after release (until I find eggs on a leaf at least). If they’ve got food and easy to access water, like droplets on leaves, they tend to stick around.
If you can buy them as larva you might have a better chance of them sticking around. They don’t have wings but still love eating aphids and other little pests.