Why You Should Welcome This Tiny Predator to Your Garden

If you've spotted a tiny yellowish insect with fierce-looking jaws in your garden or near your kitchen windowsill, don't panic. 

That little creature might just be your best garden ally, a lacewing larva, often nicknamed the “aphid lion.”

What Is a Lacewing Larva?

Lacewing larvae are the immature form of the adult lacewing, an elegant insect with gauzy, transparent wings. But don’t let the adult’s delicate appearance fool you, their larvae are ruthless garden predators.

Small, alligator-like, and armed with curved mandibles, these larvae feed on aphids, thrips, mealybugs, mites, and even small caterpillars. One lacewing larva can eat up to 200 pests a week, making them a brilliant natural alternative to chemical pesticides.

Why Hospitality Venues Should Care

If you have a vegetable garden at home, run a pub with a beer garden, a restaurant with outdoor seating, or a café with herbs growing in pots, having a healthy insect ecosystem is essential. Aphids and other pests can decimate your decorative or edible plants, leaving your space looking poorly maintained.

Encouraging natural predators like lacewings helps keep your plants lush and healthy — without the smell, cost, or eco-impact of sprays.

How to Attract Lacewings to Your Venue Garden

Grow flowering herbs: Dill, coriander, and fennel attract adult lacewings.

Provide shelter: Insect hotels, bark mulch, and hedgerows create safe spaces.

Avoid pesticides: These chemicals kill beneficial insects as well as pests.

Leave the lights low at night: Lacewings are attracted to light and may become disoriented by strong outdoor lighting.

A Sign of a Healthy Garden

Finding a lacewing larva clinging to a piece of paper or crawling on a leaf means your garden is working. It’s a sign that nature is doing what it does best, keeping things in balance.