Many gardeners know that fireflies are not actually flies, but beetles which are fascinating as a species per se, but also beautiful in their ability to twinkle like miniature stars over a field or a garden.
There is a certain nostalgia and a fairytale charm in their luminescent air tango, as they glitter in the dark to find their mate and those who are lucky enough to host some of these magic insects in their gardens should do everything to keep them, as they are not pests (on the contrary, they are beneficial insects), but small proofs that nature could indeed make wonders.
Table of Contents
What is to know about fireflies?
The population of fireflies is diminishing, as the modern world pushes quite aggressively into the wilderness, but fireflies still exist and live for short periods of their adult lives in areas that require some certain features for them to exist and develop.
They like to live in the shadow under heavy branch trees and tall grass, and prefer damp soil to lay their eggs. Given the fact that they spend their early developing stages underground, they feel much better on moist soil, where they spend the day.
How can you attract them to your garden?
Fireflies are not so pretentious, in the sense that they will like any perennial or shrub beds in your garden, as they need the shadow. It is actually quite harder to keep them alive in the garden than to attract them, especially if you live in a humid area that can provide them with their necessary moist, because they can be easily and accidentally killed by regular gardening maintenance activities, such as the use of pesticides, lawn mowing or aggressive pest control treatments against other pests.
How can we keep them?
Turn off the lights
One of the simplest methods to keep the fireflies you spotted in the garden is to offer them a dark environment. So if you have garden lamps, candles or other light sources, turn them off and get ready for a natural light show that is worth watching every night. Fireflies use bioluminescence to mate, so excessive light interferes with this process. That’s why make sure you also turn off exterior lights, to give them some privacy.
Offer them some water
You may not live exactly by the lake shore and you probably didn’t build your house over a swamp, but if you have the opportunity, let the fireflies enjoy the water and moist they need for proper development. Water your garden and if you face a dry period, build them a small pond somewhere in the back. If you have a garden fountain, it’s all for the best, but also water – pots for the birds will do them good.
Use pest control solutions
Just as you call the experts to assess the cost of termite treatment and prevention plan and you don’t go around by yourself filling the garden and soil with pesticides, you also should consider professional pest
