Darting and buzzing about ponds and gardens, dragonflies are graceful insects with plenty of important roles in nature.
Their presence typically indicates a healthy ecosystem, which is why many gardeners want them. Most importantly, they eat mosquitoes, reducing the population of the pesky biters.
But how do you even attract dragonflies in your backyard?
It’s not as complicated as you might think. Follow these gardening secrets below and watch the winged creatures swarm your backyard haven.
A Gardener’s Secret to Attract Dragonflies In Your Backyard
Darning needle, devil’s arrow, horse stingers; dragonflies come in many cool names. If you want them to make your backyard their home, here’s what you have to do:
Add a Water Feature
Did you know that dragonflies are aquatic creatures?
Yes, you read that right. Although we often observe them flitting and zipping overhead, they belong to an order of insects called Odonata.
They’re closely related to damselflies, and spend most of their time near or in bodies of water. They also lay their eggs in water, which when hatched, would spend their entire juvenile life in their aquatic habitats.
In short, you may only need to make a boggy or wet area in your backyard to attract dragonflies.
Your best bet to lure the critters in is a pond. Not to mention pond water ensures they have plenty of gnats and mosquitoes to snack on.
That said, you’d want it to be at least 20 feet wide and 2 feet deep to support all stages of a dragonfly’s life cycle.
Of course, don’t forget to add something for them to perch on. Throw some rocks around your water source so they can rest and bask in sunlight!
Plant Attractive Flowers
No space for a pond? No worries. Planting attractive flowers, shrubs, and other plants may be enough to draw the buzzing critters in.
But if you have a water feature surrounded by vegetation, that would be even better!
Adult dragonflies love hovering around colorful flora. So, you need a range of them, particularly those that appeal to the insects they prey on.
Think of brightly yellow black-eyed Susans, easy to care for, and, most importantly, lure many insects to sustain dragonflies.
Or better yet swamp milkweeds, the gorgeously pink perennials that thrive best in damp soil, to serve as a fantastic landing pod and breeding ground for the winged critters.
Besides those flowers, any submerged or floating vegetation will also be an excellent companion for the growing population of dragonflies.
Water lilies, the quintessential aquatic plants, would be great for laying eggs and as a playground for maturing nymphs. They’re pretty stunning too—showy and fragrant, perfect for attracting pollinators.
The choice of flowers and plants is ultimately yours, which is half the fun!
Ditch the Pesticides
If you’ve been using chemicals to rid your backyard of pesky pests or insects, then you should reconsider. That is if you want dragonflies to hang around your home.
Pesticides don’t handpick their targets. Apart from its harmful effects on humans, it can easily kill off beneficial insects, like bees, beetles, butterflies, spiders, and dragonflies just as well.
Besides, if your pesticides don’t kill the dragonflies, it’d still eliminate their food source, which would cause them to move out.
Instead of harmful chemicals, you can try the natural approach to fending off destructive critters.
For instance, if your backyard garden suffers from slug or snail infestation, there are flowers you can plant to keep them out.
Think of shrubby lavenders, with their oily, unpalatable leaves, they can deter slugs from invading. Or rosemaries, intensely fragrant with dense canopies that gastropods avoid at all costs.
Why Should You Want Dragonflies In Your Backyard?
Why shouldn’t you? Dragonflies are nature’s ultimate pest population control agents, feeding on pesky and harmful insects.
Don’t let their adorable appearance fool you. Dragonflies are voracious predators in their own right, hunting mosquitoes, flies, aphids, midges, and more.
If you have any problem with any of these pests, then you should definitely want dragonflies buzzing about and patrolling your backyard or garden.
Here’s a fun fact:
A single dragonfly can consume more than a hundred mosquitoes every day without breaking a sweat. Now think about ten or a hundred of them!
Final Thoughts
That’s how you attract dragonflies in your backyard like a pro!
By providing a hospitable condition for the insects to thrive (water, plants, and food source), you can easily add these magical creatures to your collection of practical garden residents!
Ben has a bachelor’s degree in construction engineering. When not constructing or remodeling X-Ray Rooms, Cardiovascular Labs, and Pharmacies, you can find him at home with wife and two daughters. Outside of family, He loves grilling and barbequing on his Big Green Egg and Blackstone Griddle, as well as working on projects around the house.
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