Soldier Beetles are a gardening FRIEND!!

Soldier Beetles are the common name for many insects belonging to the family Cantharidae. We commonly see Chauliognathus marginatus in our Central Florida garden.

Soldier Beetles are very beneficial to all gardens for multiple reasons.

First and foremost, they are natural predators to many garden foes. They enjoy eating a wide variety of soft-bodied insects to include aphids and mealybugs. Any predators of these annoying pests is a friend of mine. They will also feed on moth and butterfly larvae. This is not ideal for butterfly gardeners, but we must remember that it is important to allow an ecosystem to work. This is great news for vegetable gardeners. Moth larvae are often bring fast and vast destruction to edible plants. This would include armyworms, hornworms, cabbage worms, cutworms, etc.

Secondly, Soldier Beetles are pollinators. This is mostly accidental pollination. Their bodies are not designed to hold onto pollen like the bodies of bees. Pollination occurs when Soldier Beetles are feeding on nectar or pollen of flowers. That's right, they are not just carnivores. While they are moving from flower to flower, pollination can occur. We often find them on open faced flowers such as flowers in the daisy family. We often find them on goldenrod, burnweed, and other wildflowers. Because they enjoy such a variety of flowers, the variety of flowers they pollinate is truly impressive.

With both of these traits combined, Soldier Beetles are an important player in the garden's ecosystem. As predators, they help bring a balance between pest and predators. This reduces plant destruction while also reducing the work of the gardener in needing to prevent or remove pests. As pollinators, they help ensure fruit production and reproduction of plants that need pollination for viable seeds.

How can you attract Soldier Beetles to your garden? The best way to attract any insect to the garden is by planting as wide a variety of plants as possible. That also means allowing some "weedy", but native plants to grow in the garden. An example is American Burnweed. This plant is not favorable to most gardeners. While edible, it is not tasty. The flowers are not attractive at all. But, it attracts a wide variety of insect like ladybeetles, soldier beetles, and other insects that I want in the garden.