How to Create Habitat for Beneficial Insects

flowers blooming around a power pole
Step 1: Choosing a spot for your beneficial insect habitat
bee on a flower
Step 2: Choosing plants that support beneficial insects
a hand full of weeds
Step 3: Managing weeds in your beneficial insect habitat
small plant bug on a flower petal
Step 4: Planting your beneficial insect habitat

Printable guides to creating insect habitat

Guías imprimibles para crear hábitats para insectos, en Español (Spanish language guides)

What is a beneficial insect?

  • Both pollinators and natural enemies of pests
  • Bees (much more than just honey bees)  
  • Flies, wasps, beetles, bugs, spiders, predatory mites, and more
monarch butterfly on milkweed

What attracts and keeps beneficial insects?

  • Food—diverse flowering plants with lots of pollen and nectar 
  • Shelter—different insects use different types of plants and ground cover or bare ground 
  • Protection from harm—specifically harm from exposure to pesticides  
pollinator garden

This guide was prepared by Amara Dunn-Silver. Last updated on 3/17/2023.

Funds were provided by:

  • The Towards Sustainability Foundation
  • USDA National Institute of Food and Agriculture, Smith Lever project 2020-21-108
  • NYS Department of Agriculture and Markets
  • NYS Department of Environmental Conservation
Portrait of Amara Dunn
Amara Dunn-Silver

Senior Extension Associate

NYS Integrated Pest Management

Amara Dunn-Silver