Appearance Ladybugs and Asian lady beetles look similar, but there are key differences. Asian lady beetles are slightly larger than ladybugs. All ladybugs are bright red with black spots while the color of Asian lady beetles varies from red to orange. Ladybugs have a round or oval shape.
Ladybugs love snacking on aphids, mealybugs, and spider mites. Many of these bugs may have adverse effects on plants in your garden if left alone, but when ladybugs live among them, they will either be eaten by adult ladybugs, or else those ladybugs will lay eggs among the aphids and other pests, which will then allow the larvae to feast upon ...
This, the seven-spotted lady beetle, is one of the two most common Ladybugs that were introduced in the 1970's in the USA. Very beneficial to the garden, munching on aphids.
Char, As far as I know, ladybugs don't touch the plants. They do love aphids and any other insects that eat your plants, so if you see ladybugs on a particular plant, and it seems like something is wrong with that plant, then there's probably something else attacking your plant, and the ladybugs are actually helping you out. As for the kind of bug that looks like a ladybug, but isn't ( I ...
A thread in the Southwest Gardening forum, titled Native Arizona Ladybugs? Alternatives?
Does anyone know if you can actually raise ladybugs? I figure you must be able to if you can get them from mail order (THEY would be raising them, right?). I bought a few batches last year to get rid of aphids but more of them died than lived and now I'm having aphid issues in my greenhouse where I'm overwintering many plants.