Good Bugs vs Bad Bugs

Summer has suddenly decided to appear in San Diego (a little late, in my opinion) and bugs are rampant! Just this morning I went water my plants and found that my basil had been ALL eaten up overnight!!!

And the nerve of whatever it was that ate my plants to leave droppings all over the floor:

And then I found this hungry little guy in my flower bed...

Rookie Tip: A highly diluted soap solution will help get rid of aphids. My friend Rebecca also says that a cayenne pepper solution will work with garden pests.

However much to my delight, I also spotted my first praying mantis in my garden! YAY! I had bought a praying mantis egg sac months ago and wasn't sure if it ever hatched, but I guess it did! This one is about 1 inch long, so it's still a baby! I hope it helps with some of the pests in my garden...

Rookie Tip: Praying mantises will eat all sorts of bugs in your garden, but also know that they can eat the beneficial bugs as well. Regardless, they're fascinating to have in your garden!

Right now for me, I have some many non-beneficial insects in my garden like beetles, flies, aphids, and caterpillars, that I think this little one will have plenty to feed on. I just hope I don't accidentally throw him away when I'm pruning my garden!!