The gray garden bug and other bugs are often found in the garden as well as on and in the house. In principle, these fascinating animals are neither harmful to plants nor to humans or animals, although they can secrete a smelly secretion when threatened. You have these options if you have a bedbug infestation.
How do you fight the gray garden bug?
The gray garden bug (Rhaphigaster nebulosa) is harmless to humans and pets and feeds mainly on plant juices. However, it can secrete a smelly secretion when it feels threatened. If there is a bug infestation in the garden or house, we recommend shaking off or collecting the animals and taking preventive measures such as insect screens.
Bugs in the house and garden
The gray garden bug (Latin: Rhaphigaster nebulosa) is one of two native species of stink bugs and is - as its name suggests - mainly found in the garden. However, in autumn, when it gets cooler outside and nature slowly prepares for winter, the animals increasingly seek shelter in apartments and houses. In some years they can become a real nuisance due to their sheer numbers. But don't worry: the garden bugs don't want to make themselves at home in your home and multiply there, they're just looking for a protected winter quarters.
Is the gray garden bug dangerous?
In general, bedbugs have a bad reputation, but it is unfair. Of the around 40,000 different species worldwide, the vast majority are completely harmless to humans and animals, including the gray garden bug. The animals are not poisonous, do not sting, do not bite, do not suck blood (quite the opposite!) and do not reproduce en masse. Damage to plants is also usually limited.
As a result, these bugs are not classified as pests, although they can be quite annoying, especially in autumn. They probably owe their bad reputation to their habit of spraying a smelly secretion when threatened (for example, if you touch them). This is intended to spoil the appetite of predators and thus protect the animals from being eaten.
When touched, the gray garden bug secretes a smelly substance, which is why it is also called the stink bug
What does the gray garden bug eat?
The gray garden bug primarily feeds on plant juices, although they prefer the juices of deciduous trees. In the garden, the insects are particularly common on fruit trees (e.g. apple and pear trees) and berry trees (e.g. blackberries or wild fruit). They also enjoy roses, perennials and other ornamental plants, as well as some vegetable plants, such as potatoes, cabbage, beans and strawberries. Garden bugs are very agile and therefore difficult to detect in the garden. They often hide in the grass from where they prey on plants. Occasionally, however, the animals also suck out other, usually dead, insects and their larvae.
Risk of confusion with Asian pest
In contrast to the gray garden bug that is native to us, the marbled stink bug (Halyomorpha halys), which has a very similar color on the outside, is considered a major pest in both agriculture and hobby gardens. The species, introduced from China, sucks with great appetite on fruits such as apples, pears, grapes, peaches and hazelnuts as well as tomatoes, peppers, corn on the cob, eggplant, soybeans and others. As a result, the insect causes major crop damage as the affected fruits become deformed and discolored. In addition, transmission via mold often occurs.
The marmorated stink bug can also be found on other plants and damages, for example, ash trees, buddleia, rowan berries, etc. The insect seems to have a preference for rose plants (Rosaceae). So that you can distinguish between the two species, you will find an overview of the respective characteristics in the table.
| Gray garden bug | Marbled Stink Bug | |
|---|---|---|
| Size | 14 to 16 millimeters | 12 to 17 millimeters |
| Coloring | grey-yellow to brown with unevenly distributed dots on the upper side, slightly darker in color | brown-yellow with numerous black dots on the top |
| Pronotum and elytra | no bright spots on the front edge of the back of the shield, dotted elytra | 4 to 5 light spots on the anterior edge of the back of the shield, lines on the transparent parts of the elytra |
| Sensor | Black and white coloring only begins after constriction | colored black and white |
| Bottom | black dotted | monochrome |
Excursus
The Green Stink Bug
In contrast to the two more brownish-colored species of bugs, the green stink bug, which is also native, is quite easy to distinguish simply because of its coloring - if you even spot it on a green leaf. Palomena prasina, its Latin name, has a leafy green color in the summer months, which gradually changes to brown towards autumn. The winter form is uniformly dark brown and has no spots. This means that the species adapts perfectly to its surroundings and camouflages itself from predators. Like the gray garden bug, this species feeds primarily on plant juices from deciduous trees and is not considered a pest.
Detecting bedbug infestations
The gray garden bug as well as the other species of bugs often appear in the summer months when it is hot and dry. At this time, an infestation is very likely, which is why you should regularly inspect your plants and search for traces of bugs. Infected plants show the following characteristics:
- Pitting on leaves, shoot tips and flowers
- brownish discolored puncture marks on leaves
- torn tissue on the leaves
- stunted and discolored shoot tips, flowers and fruits
- Flowers don't open properly, buds stay closed
- Fruits and vegetables are inedible due to deformation and the smelly secretion
You cannot normally recognize the animals by their smell, as they only give off this smell when there is impending danger. Also, keep an eye out not only for the bugs, but also for their nymphs - that's what the larvae are called. These also feed on plant juices. They are significantly smaller and usually darker in color than the adult specimens.
How to get rid of the gray garden bug
“Most bedbugs are harmless and do no harm.” (Nature Conservation Association Germany, NABU)
The first rule when fighting gray garden bugs is: Never touch the animals with your bare hands! When touched or if you crush them, bedbugs secrete the acrid secretion, the unpleasant smell of which is very difficult to remove. Therefore, do not kill any bugs in your apartment - especially if they are sitting on the wallpaper or on a porous wall - because the scent clings very stubbornly and you will be left with it for a long time. It is therefore better to proceed as described in the following section.
Combat
You can repel bedbugs and other insects with neem oil or soapy water
The best way to combat bugs that appear in the garden is to simply shake them off and/or pick them up. Be sure to wear gloves or use tools such as a dustpan with a soft-bristled hand brush. You can also spoil the animals' appetite by spraying the affected plants with neem oil or soapy water (made from dishwashing liquid or liquid soft soap). However, these methods don't work on all plants because you probably don't want to soap fruits.
Alternatively, the insecticide pyrethrum, made from various wild flowers (Tanacetum), also works against bedbugs, but is also fatally poisonous for all other insects - and therefore also for beneficial insects.
Prevention
Because bedbugs are so difficult to control, you should prevent a greater infestation. These precautionary measures will help:
- Control: As soon as it gets warmer in spring, check your plants regularly and collect any bugs you find. Dispose of them so that the animals cannot reproduce any further.
- Keep soil moist: The gray garden bug and other types of bugs occur primarily in hot and dry weather. Therefore, in such weather, water more often so that the soil remains consistently moist.
- Garden pond: A natural garden pond with frogs and toads living in it is ideal for fighting bugs: the amphibians are only too happy to eat the insects and thus prevent them from multiplying.
- Chickens: If you have chickens, feel free to let them run around between the fruit trees: the poultry diligently pick up the bugs while looking for food.
Excursus
How to get bedbugs out of the apartment?
As mentioned, the bedbugs can increasingly be found in the house and garden from around the end of September. Here, too, do not collect the animals with your bare hands, but sweep them up with the help of a dustpan and hand brush or collect them in a glass/cup (the tried-and-tested cup-and-cardboard method is recommended here). Release the bugs outside, but be sure to close windows and doors carefully. To prevent insects from coming in, it's best to install an insect screen in spring (€13.00 on Amazon). This not only helps against bedbugs, but also against all other annoying insectoid visitors.
Lifestyle and distribution area
The gray garden bug is widespread in Germany, but is increasingly found in central and southern Germany. In the north, however, the animals appear more sporadically. The bugs overwinter as imago (i.e. as an adult insect after pupation) usually in large numbers in various places, for example in tree bark, in cracks and crevices or in house walls covered with ivy.
As soon as it gets warmer in spring, the animals come out of their winter quarters. Now, in late spring, each female lays around 40 eggs on the leaves and shoots of the preferred host plants. Within a short time, the so-called nymphs, which are still wingless, hatch from this. However, the stink glands are already present and functional. Only one generation of young bugs develops per year.
The following video shows what the eggs of the gray garden bug look like and how a nymph hatches from such an egg:
Ein Graue Gartenwanze schlüpft aus dem Ei - eine Nymphe entsteht
Frequently asked questions
Can the gray garden bug fly?
Like almost all bugs, the gray garden bug can fly, but is not a particularly skilled flyer. The insect also makes a loud humming sound.
Are garden bugs related to blood-sucking bed bugs?
Although garden bugs and bed bugs both belong to the order of bugs (Heteroptera), they are assigned to different genera and families and are therefore not related to each other. While the garden bugs as stink bugs (Pentatomidae) feed primarily on plant juices, the bed bugs are bloodsuckers belonging to the flat bugs (Cimicidae).
Are garden bugs dangerous to pets?
The gray garden bug is not dangerous to cats, dogs or other pets. Their secretion is not poisonous, but can only burn somewhat unpleasantly - especially if cheeky pets get it injected into their eyes or mouths.
Tip
Stink bugs become active in spring when temperatures reach around ten degrees Celsius.
