If you see insects in your garden, you may be tempted to rush out and buy a pesticide. However, before you spend your money, there is something you should know. Some insects can actually help your garden because they are the natural predator of the bugs that do damage. If you use pesticides, you risk wiping out the good guys along with the bad. A better idea is to use companion planting to attract beneficial insects to your garden.

Aphids are a common garden pest. They are also one of the most destructive insects you will face. They are small, pear-shaped insects, commonly found in clusters on plant leaves or flowers. If you don't catch them quickly enough, they will eat their way through your garden.

You have several options for beneficial insects. Their natural predators include aphidius, aphidoletes, dicyphus, hoverflies, ladybugs and pirate bugs. Any one of these insects can help reduce aphids. Fernleaf yarrow, dill, digitalis, Queen Anne's lace, fennel, sunflower, globe candytuft and bluebonnets are only a few of the plants that can attract these insects to your garden.

Another common pest found in the garden is the spider mite. If they have attacked your plants, you may notice discoloration, flecking or scorching of leaves. If you do not get rid of them fast enough, their damage can lead to leaf loss. In severe infestations, this insect can even kill your plants.

There are some beneficial mites that attack these destructive mites. Dicyphus is also a natural predator. To naturally eliminate the problem of spider mites, you will want to plant mullein, digitalis or shasta daisies in your garden.

Slugs are an adversary of many gardeners. If there are enough slugs in a garden and the conditions are right, they can easily devastate your vegetable garden in just a few short days. While they can be handpicked out of your garden, this takes time and does not prevent more slugs from appearing. However, if you use amaranthus to attract ground beetles, you should notice a quick reduction in slugs.

Grubs can be a problem not only in your garden, but also your lawn. They are the larvae of Japanese and June beetles and chafers. These garden pests attack the roots of plants and grass. In your lawn, you will notice yellow or brown patches that feel spongy.

Ground beetles, spring tiphia wasps, tachinid flies and parasitic wasps are the natural predators of grubs. To attract the wasps, you need to plant peonies, firethorn, forsythia, garden cosmos (sometimes called Mexican aster), sea lavender, lemon balm or parsley. If you have children or pets that accompany you to the garden, you may not want wasps around. In that case, you would want to use amaranthus to attract ground beetles. While lemon balm can be used to attract tachinid flies, it also attracts wasps.

Beneficial insects can help you in many ways. Not only does it save you money on pesticides, but it also helps made your garden self-sustaining. With a self-sufficient garden, you can spend more time enjoying your garden instead of fighting to protect it from pests.