Chrysoperla carnea
The larva of the common green lacewing: a 2–10 mm, alligator-shaped predator with large, forward-pointing jaws that grips soft-bodied prey and sucks it dry. It is sold as larvae for aphid hot spots and also takes young mealybugs, thrips, whitefly and mites. The adults eat only pollen, nectar and honeydew, and most fly away after emerging — so each release does its work in the two to three weeks the larvae are feeding.
At a glance
- Mode
- Predator — larvae only
- Rate
- 2–20 /m² per release, weekly
- Ships as
- 1,000 L2 larvae in buckwheat
- Temp
- Best 20–28 °C; active 5–35 °C
- Humidity
- Largely unaffected
- Setting
- Greenhouse, indoor, low crops
How it works
The larva seizes prey in its large jaws, injects saliva that digests the contents and sucks them out, leaving a shrivelled skin. It passes through three instars in two to three weeks and eats a few hundred aphids on the way — Koppert puts it at 300–400, Biobest at up to 600, most of it in the last instar. Against mealybugs it prefers first-instar nymphs; in a trial on cotton mealybug the larger nymphs were largely a refuge from it.
Only the larva hunts. Adult Chrysoperla feed on pollen, nectar and honeydew, and in a greenhouse most fly out without contributing anything, so a release is a knockdown you repeat rather than a population you establish. When prey runs short the larvae eat each other. What is sold as Chrysoperla carnea is strictly a complex of more than 20 described look-alike species told apart by their courtship songs; many US garden retailers sell the related C. rufilabris.
Is it established?
There is no mummy or other lasting sign as there is with a parasitoid — you are looking for the larvae themselves and what they leave behind. Check the same colonies you released onto.
- DAY 1Cream to tan, alligator-shaped larvae moving through the colony
- DAYS 2–7Shrivelled, sucked-empty prey skins among the live pests
- WEEKS 2–3Small, roundish, whitish silk cocoons, about 3–8 mm, on leaves and stems
- AFTERYellow-green adults emerge and mostly leave; release again if pests remain
Release & handling
Larvae arrive as second instars in a bottle of buckwheat husk or vermiculite. Release them as soon as they arrive: packed together without food they start eating each other. Koppert allows one to two days at 8–10 °C in the dark with the bottle lying on its side; US suppliers of C. rufilabris say to use them within hours.
Release the same day
Larvae are cannibalistic in the bottle. The sooner they are on the plants, the more of them there are.
8–10 °C, dark, on its side
One to two days at most. Keep out of sunlight and away from pesticides.
Onto the colonies
Sprinkle carrier and larvae onto infested leaves. For prevention spread evenly; for hot spots put them in and around the colony.
Repeat weekly
Adults do not stay. Release again each week until the pest is under control.
Pesticide sensitivity
Broad-spectrum organophosphates, carbamates and pyrethroids kill natural enemies along with the pest. Soaps and oils kill larvae they hit but leave no residue. Check a product →
When to choose something else
Lacewing larvae are a broad, short-lived knockdown. Choose something else when:
- The mealybug colony is large and full of egg sacs — the mealybug destroyer needs mealybug eggs to breed, and its adults and larvae eat the mealybugs
- You are already releasing the mealybug destroyer — in lab tests lacewing larvae usually won when the two predators' larvae met, so use one or stagger them
- You want lasting, preventive aphid control under glass — the adults leave, so use a parasitoid such as Aphidius colemani
- Temperatures average below about 12 °C — Koppert gives that as the lower limit for useful activity
Where to buy
Suppliers of Chrysoperla carnea listed alphabetically, not ranked. Many US garden retailers sell C. rufilabris instead. helpfulbugs takes no commission and does not sell insects.
- Agrobío1,000 / 10,000 larvaeEU
- BioBee500 larvae; 1,000 eggsIL / EXPORT
- Biobest500 / 1,000 / 2,500 / 10,000EU / NA
- Koppert1,000 / 10,000 larvaeGLOBAL
- Natural Enemies (Koppert Chrysopa)1,000 larvaeUS
Chrysoperla carnea by target
Rate and timing differ by what you are releasing it against. Each page below is the program for one pest.