Do You Know If These Garden Bugs Are Helpful or Harmful?

By: Jacqueline Samaroo
Estimated Completion Time
3 min
Do You Know If These Garden Bugs Are Helpful or Harmful?
Image: image4you / Pixabay

About This Quiz

Time to bug out! These buzzing, creeping and crawling garden visitors are sure to get under your skin!

Gardeners can look forward to some bugs helping their garden to thrive. These tiny creatures play important roles in pollination, improving soil and, of course, controlling the number of pesky pests which can wreak havoc on garden plants.

Truth be told, some bugs are only harmful at certain stages of their development. For instance, many adult moths are not directly harmful to plants, but their larvae are some of the most notoriously destructive pests which gardeners have to deal with. These wriggly critters munch away at an incredible rate on delicious leaves and prized fruits and vegetables.

Many gardeners actively try to attract good bugs to their plants while trying to keep nasty bugs out, Some of the good guys spread pollen, and in so doing they contribute to how well plants bear fruits and seeds. Some of them dig through the soil, helping roots to flourish while adding much-needed nutrients to the soil. Among the most important ones are those which give the gardener a natural and chemical-free way of ridding the garden of pests by preying on them.

Expert gardeners are able to recognize and differentiate between bugs on sight - can you? If you can, then get started on the quiz!

Ladybug
BubbleJuice / Pixabay
Are ladybugs useful or a hindrance in a garden?
Helpful
Harmful
Ground Beetle
Kathy2408 / Pixabay
Which label fits how ground beetles perform in a garden?
Helpful
Harmful
Aphids
CarlottaSilvestrini / Pixabay
Are aphids good or bad visitors to have in your garden?
Helpful
Harmful

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Minute Pirate Bug
Wiki Commons by Jack Dykinga
Are minute pirate bugs beneficial for or harmful to a garden?
Helpful
Harmful
Corn Earworm Moth
Wiki Commons by Melissa McMasters
What effect does the corn earworm usually have on gardens?
Helpful
Harmful
Green Lacewing
artsehn / Pixabay
Is the green lacewing a good or bad garden bug?
Helpful
Harmful

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Squash Vine Borer Moth
Wiki Commons by SB Johnny
Is the squash vine borer a good or bad garden visitor?
Helpful
Harmful
Colorado Potato Beetle
Pavlofox / Pixabay
What effect will the Colorado potato beetle typically have on potato plants?
Helpful
Harmful
Aphid Midge
Wiki Commons by OgreBot
Is the aphid midge a helpful bug or a hindrance in growing your garden?
Helpful
Harmful

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Butterfly
Starzshine / Pixabay
Is the butterfly a helpful or harmful garden visitor?
Helpful
Harmful
Tomato Hornworm
MMartin1202 / Pixabay
What kind of guest does the tomato hornworm make in your garden?
Helpful
Harmful
Cucumber Beetle
Brett_Hondow / Pixabay
Is the cucumber beetle beneficial or a hindrance to gardeners?
Helpful
Harmful

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Cutworm
Wiki Commons by USGS Bee Inventory and Monitoring Lab
Which effect will the cutworm have on your garden?
Helpful
Harmful
Damsel Bug
Wiki Commons by S. Rae
Is the damsel bug a benefit or a detriment to plants in your garden?
Helpful
Harmful
Cabbage Looper
Wiki Commons by USGS Bee Inventory and Monitoring Lab
What is the best way to describe the cabbage looper's effect on your plants?
Helpful
Harmful

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Bee
chezbeate / Pixabay
What type of guest does the bee make in your garden?
Helpful
Harmful
Mealybug
Wiki Commons by incidencematrix
What kind of guest will the mealybug be in your garden?
Helpful
Harmful
Scale Insects
Wiki Commons by Keisotyo
Are scale insects good for or detrimental to a garden?
Helpful
Harmful

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Flea Beetle
Brett_Hondow / Pixabay
Can you say whether the flea beetle is a harmful or helpful bug to gardens?
Helpful
Harmful
Braconid Wasp
Wiki Commons by John Tann
Is the braconid wasp a benefit or detriment to garden plants?
Helpful
Harmful
Praying Mantis
A. Martin UW Photography / Moment / Getty Images
What effect do praying mantises have in a garden?
Helpful
Harmful

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Mexican Bean Beetle
marleny / Pixabay
Is the Mexican bean beetle a helpful or harmful garden bug?
Helpful
Harmful
Spider
Munruthel / Pixabay
Are spiders naughty or nice to your garden?
Helpful
Harmful
Soldier Beetle
JackDaniels / Pixabay
Are soldier beetles among the good guys or bad guys in a garden?
Helpful
Harmful

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Spider Mite
NNehring / E+ / Getty Images
How would you describe the spider mite's presence in your garden?
Helpful
Harmful
Tachinid Fly
Wiki Commons by Katja Schulz
Is the tachinid fly helpful or harmful in a garden?
Helpful
Harmful
Hoverfly
nidan / Pixabay
Is the hoverfly a good or bad bug to have in your garden?
Helpful
Harmful

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Snail
Pexels / Pixabay
What do most people think of snails in their garden?
Helpful
Harmful
Dung Beetle
Gartenredakteurin / Pixabay
Is the dung beetle good or bad for your garden plants?
Helpful
Harmful
Bumblebee
krzysztofniewolny / Pixabay
What kind of garden guests are bumblebees?
Helpful
Harmful

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Tarnished Plant Bug
Wiki Commons by Katja Schulz
Is the tarnished plant bug viewed as helpful or harmful by gardeners?
Helpful
Harmful
Slug
Michel_van_der_Vegt / PixabayMichel_van_der_Vegt / Pixabay
What effect do slugs typically have on a garden?
Helpful
Harmful
Assassin Bug
Brett_Hondow / Pixabay
Do assassin bugs help or hurt your garden?
Helpful
Harmful

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Japanese Beetle
YinYang / E+ / Getty Images
Does the Japanese beetle have a good or bad effect on garden plants?
Helpful
Harmful
Spined Soldier Bug
Michael Siluk / UIG / Getty Images
Do spined soldier bugs harm or help your garden?
Helpful
Harmful
Earthworm
Natfot / Pixabay
What treatment do earthworms give to a garden?
Helpful
Harmful

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Earwig
Dave Brenner / Moment Open / Getty Images
What effect do earwigs tend to have on a garden?
Helpful
Harmful
Whiteflies
Avalon_Studio / E+ / Getty Images
How would you describe the effect of whiteflies on a garden?
Helpful
Harmful
Cabbage Fly
Cabbage Fly - Wiki Commons by James Lindsey's Ecology of Commanster Site
What is the cabbage maggot's effect on garden plants?
Helpful
Harmful

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Dragonfly
liggraphy / Pixabay
Do dragonflies help or harm a garden?
Helpful
Harmful