Have you ever considered that plants can be broken into groups, just like plants?By classifying plants into their taxonomic order, we can automatically understand a few things about them. For example, what type of mouth-part do they have, and what does that mean for the type of plant damage or predatory method they're capable of?What types of chemicals work on them, and which ones don't? Which beneficials eat which pests? And are there any truly neutral insects out there, or are they all having some type of "positive" or "negative" impact on the garden?Entomologist and ecologist Dr Ian Smith is back on the show, and he's going to break things down for us.Here's the cheat sheet for which insects belong where:Diptera (flys)The GoodHoverflyRobber fliesThe badLeaf minersFruit flies The inbetweenBlowflies, bottle flies and house fliesFungus gnatsColeoptera (Beetles)BeneficialsLadybird (Coccinellidae)Ground beetles (Carabidae)Rove beetle (Staphylinidae)The BadsLeaf and flea beetlesScarabaeidaeWeevilsThe neutralsPlague Soldier BeetleHymenoptera (wasps and ants)The goodParasitoid waspsThe badGall waspsThe in-betweenAntsEuropean waspsAcariformes (Mites)Predatory mitesSpider mites and earth mitesHemiptera (True bugs)The goodAssassin bugs (and similar)The badAphids (Aphididae family)Whiteflies (Aleyrodidae family)Leafhoppers (Cicadellidae family)Stink bugs (Pentatomidae family)Lace bugs (Tingidae family)Mealybugs (Pseudococcidae family)Scale (Coccoidea)LepidopteraMothsButterfliesBlattodeaCockroachesTermitesOthersAraneae (Spiders)Lacewing (Neuroptera)Dragonflies (Odonata)Praying mantis (Mantises)EPISODE LINKSFollow Ian on Twitter: https://twitter.com/EcologIanIan's LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/driansmithMy LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/daniel-fuller-180908208/Rove beetle wing folding video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kNrXvdOjylAVelvet mite images: https://www.google.com/search?sca_esv=8b94fdf9c54254b4&rlz=1C1UEAD_en-GBAU938AU938&sxsrf=ACQVn0_5qreTzLiKH2svJl2lB_o_9HUVOQ:1710052567103&q=velvet+mite&tbm=isch&source=lnms&sa=X&ved=2ahUKEwiDrbyeiumEAxXLsFYBHUWRC-YQ0pQJegQIDRAB FOLLOW US ON SOCIAL MEDIATwitter: @PlantsGrowHere / Facebook: @PlantsGrowHerePodcast - Join our Facebook group!VISIT OUR WEBSITEwww.PlantsGrowHere.comLET'S WORK TOGETHERWe're always on the hunt for interesting people, doing interesting things. If you'd like to work with us send a message via our online form or a direct email to plantsgrowhere@gmail.com.