How To Tell a Good Bug From a Bad Bug

It’s hard to know which bugs in the garden are helpful and healthy and which ones will grow into unfriendly, garden-destroying predators.

The University of Connecticut Home and Garden Education Center offers weekly columns elucidating important topics, including this week’s column on how to treat friendly pollinators such as butterflies.

A first step in protecting young pollinators is to be able to recognize them. The photos, right, for example show a swallowtail larva with spots on its stripes; and a monarch butterfly larva with just stripes. Novice gardeners (and even relatively experienced ones) might not know that larva is another word for caterpillar — and might not know that these large striped caterpillars/larvae will someday grow into beautiful butterflies, especially if you can protect and nurture them.

Once you know how to recognize beneficial bugs, it’s helpful to know how to nurture and protect them.

UConn’s gardening columnist Dawn Pettinelli goes so far as to recommend planting a pollinator garden, with plants that have healthy and delicious pollen. 

The first thing you need to do, of course, is create a safe space in your early spring garden for eggs and nests.

“Leaving an undisturbed, bare patch of soil or pile of brush in your garden will provide habitat for ground-nesting and cavity-nesting bees,” Pettinelli says in her column.

The next thing to worry about after nests and eggs? Food.

“To encourage the presence of butterflies, it is essential to supply food for their larvae, also known as caterpillars,” Pettinelli says. 

“Monarch butterflies are considered specialists, meaning they only complete their development when feeding on one particular plant: milkweed. 

“A few native species of milkweed are butterfly milkweed (Asclepius tuberosa), common milkweed (A. syricacia) and swamp milkweed (A. incarnata). 

“Others, like the black swallowtail, feed on members of the parsley family.”

Knowing what these butterflies eat can also help you identify which caterpillars are living in your garden. If you have a lot of parsley and you see a fat, stripey caterpillar, look closely to see if there are spots as well; chances are that you’ve got swallowtail larvae growing big and strong on your herbs.

Find UConn’s list of Northeast pollinator plants at https://pollinator-resource-center/northeast.   

When you go to the garden center this spring, you can even purchase plants that will entice pollinators to come live with you. Pettinelli particularly recommends perennial plants because they definitely have pollen (which can sometimes be lacking in annuals that are bred for a particular look).

Pesticides should be strenuously avoided; don’t use them at home and check to be sure none have been used on your plants before you buy them (this is a factor in favor of shopping local; the staff at your favorite nearby garden center probably know more about the plants they’re selling than the average big box store employee). 

Native plants should be prioritized. In her column, Pettinelli says that, “The color and shape of a flower will influence the types of pollinators that will visit it. For example, bees are attracted to white, yellow and blue flowers while butterflies prefer blooms that are red, orange, pink and purple. 

“Native plants to incorporate into pollinator gardens include: Anise hyssop, Beebalm, Goldenrod, Moss phlox, New England aster, and Purple Coneflower.”

These two photos from the University of Connecticut Home and Garden Education Center show two types of proto butterflies (the monarch has just stripes, the swallowtail also has spots) that should be nurtured if you spot them in your  yard. Photo courtesy UCONN

Photo courtesy UCONN

These two photos from the University of Connecticut Home and Garden Education Center show two types of proto butterflies (the monarch has just stripes, the swallowtail also has spots) that should be nurtured if you spot them in your  yard. Photo courtesy UCONN

Latest News

From research to recognition: Student project honors pioneering Black landowner

Cornwall Consolidated School seventh graders Skylar Brown, Izabella Coppola, Halley Villa, Willow Berry, Claire Barbosa, Willa Lesch, Vivianne DiRocco and Franco Aburto presented a group research project on the life of Naomi Freeman Wednesday, April 23. In attendance were U.S. Rep. Jahana Hayes, D-Conn., John Mills, president of Alex Breanne Corporation, Cornwall First Selectman Gordon Ridgway, Cornwall Selectman Jennifer Markow and CCS social studies teacher Will Vincent.

Photo by Riley Klein

CORNWALL — “In Cornwall you have made the decision that everyone here matters and everyone’s story is important,” said U.S. Rep. Jahana Hayes, D-Waterbury, to the seventh grade class at Cornwall Consolidated School April 23.

Hayes was in attendance to celebrate history on Wednesday as the CCS students presented their group research project on the life of Naomi Cain Freeman, the first Black female landowner in Cornwall.

Keep ReadingShow less
Legal Notices - April 24, 2025

Town of Salisbury

Board of Finance

Keep ReadingShow less
Classifieds - April 24, 2025

Help Wanted

Experienced horse equestrian: to train three-year-old white Persian Mare for trail riding. 860-67-0499.

Help wanted: Small Angus Farm seeks reliable help for cattle and horses. Duties include feeding, fence repair, machine repair. Will train the right person. 860-671-0499.

Keep ReadingShow less