Kirby discusses ladybugs with BDN
Clay Kirby, University of Maine Cooperative Extension insect diagnostician, gave tips to the Bangor Daily News for homeowners who want to keep Asian lady beetles (ladybugs) out of their homes. Kirby recommended sealing any of the house’s cracks or holes. And if ladybugs do get inside, he advised scooping them up in a dustpan and releasing them outside; ladybugs are predators of aphids that destroy plants, including roses and fruit trees. He says the ladybugs don’t reproduce inside over the winter. In the spring, he says they’ll awaken and look to get back outside.