How Dragonflies Benefit Your Garden (And Easy Hacks To Attract Them)

Whether it is just an individual or a multitude of dragonflies swarming your yard and garden, these insects offer a variety of benefits beyond just their elegant appearance. Perhaps the most immediately obvious, and relieving, of these backyard benefits is the reduction in the number of mosquitoes. Nothing sends people scurrying back inside faster than a hoard of hungry mosquitoes. But, since each individual dragonfly can consume more than a hundred mosquitoes a day, it is easy to see how a platoon of dragonflies can drastically reduce the mosquito population in your backyard. However, a dragonfly's carnivorous appetite isn't limited to mosquitoes. These fast-flying insects, capable of speeds up to 30 miles per hour, will eat almost every other insect you can imagine. This includes gnats, midges, flies, flying ants and termites, mayflies, wasps, grasshoppers, and more. 

Additionally, dragonflies are considered an indicator of a healthy environment and are above average pollinators. Of course, many people just enjoy watching these colorful creatures as they zip around in search of their prey. So, any way you look at it, dragonflies benefit your garden and are insects you shouldn't kill. In fact, if you enjoy spending time in your backyard and garden, you should actively try to increase the population of dragonflies. Luckily, there are a few easy hacks to attract them.

One of the quickest ways to draw more dragonflies to your yard is to add water. Something along the lines of a koi pond is ideal (although minus the koi, as fish eat dragonfly larva). However, the water feature doesn't have to be grandiose in order to attract dragonflies. More modest water features such as bird baths, fountains, or even wash tubs can do the trick.

So, why does water attract dragonflies? According to the University of Florida's IFAS Extension, it is because while we see dragonflies speeding through the skies, they actually spend most of their lives underwater. Dragonflies lay their eggs in water. These eggs ultimately hatch in the water and the nymphs that emerge can live in the water for up to two years before beginning to live their remaining days above the water's surface. While it is the above water portion of the dragonfly's life that is what most people see, it is also relatively short -– typically six months at best.

In addition to providing a nursery, water is also an abundant hunting area for dragonflies. So, if you are worried a pond or bird bath will attract mosquitoes, rest assured a healthy population of dragonflies can offset that issue. As mentioned previously, adult dragonflies have the ability to consume hundreds of mosquitoes per day. Additionally, the dragonfly nymphs enjoy gorging themselves on mosquito larva below the water's surface.

In addition to doing things like limiting the use of pesticides — which can not only kill dragonflies, but will also reduce their food supply – and adding water features to your yard, there are a number of plants which can be used to attract dragonflies to your yard and garden. Several of these plants, such as water lilies and cattails can be added to ponds and fountains. These plants are attractive to dragonflies because they give them a safe place to lay eggs and hide their young. They also offer a way for dragonflies to conceal themselves from prey and hide from predators.

There are a number of plants that you can also sprinkle throughout your yard and garden with or without a water feature. These include flowering plants such as black-eyed Susan, milkweed, iris, yarrow, tickseed, aster, and others. The attraction to flowering plants is two-fold for dragonflies. For one, they are good pollinators, as already mentioned. Secondly, they prey on many other insects which are attracted to the flower, pollen, and/or nectar of these plants. One thing to keep in mind, though, when landscaping your yard and planting your garden is that dragonflies tend to like open areas, so be sure to leave plenty of empty space between planted areas.