What To Plant To Attract Dragonflies

While dragonflies are considered to be one of nature’s best pest control measures, gardeners can encourage their presence by adding a few key plants. 

If left unchecked, an infestation of pests can significantly damage the plants that call your garden home. Some suck the sap and nutrients from plants, while others cause leaves to yellow and drop off. 

The worst of them even eat our plants, which not only leaves our gardens in a mess and more susceptible to other diseases, but also has the potential to obliterate agricultural crops. While gardeners are often instructed to eradicate any pests with chemical based insecticides, what if we told you that there was another way?

Five Plants That Will Encourage Dragonflies To Your Garden

Dragonflies are a common sight around Australia, particularly when there is access to freshwater, such as a pond, stream, river or lake. With over three hundred and twenty species that call the Land Down Under home, dragonflies also chase and catch other insects in acrobatic displays before consuming them. 

In no uncertain terms, these guys are one of the most effective ways to combat pests naturally, especially for mosquitos. However, they rarely appear without access to the right resources, so what can you plant in order to encourage their presence in your garden?

Black Eyed Susan – Plant a pool of bright yellow in your garden with Black Eyed Susan. The beautiful blooms on these flowers bring plenty of pollinators to your garden, including butterflies, bees and yes, dragonflies. These native plants are also incredibly drought resistant, making them super easy to care for while still looking their best. 

Water Lilies – For gardeners that have a fish pond or water feature in their backyard, this water based plant provides dragonflies with the perfect location for laying eggs, as well as providing the young dragonflies with places to hide. The rocks used to weigh down the water lilies also provide suitable hiding places in the event that they need some respite. 

Coneflower – Also known as Echinacea purpurea, the coneflower plant is a perennial that blooms from summer to autumn. It’s an easygoing, long-flowering perennial that comes into its own in autumn when it is massed with lilac flowers, and attracts a wide range of pollinators during this period, such as dragonflies. 

Meadow Sage – As an aromatic perennial wildflower from Europe, Western Asia and Northern Africa, meadow sage is known for its beautiful blue and purple flower spikes, which can grow up to sixty centimetres. In addition to its looks, this hardy woody stemmed plant is notorious for attracting all sorts of good bugs, such as bees, birds and dragonflies. 

Arrowhead – Native to the tropical rainforests in Central and South America, the arrowhead plant gets its name from the spade-like shape of its leaves. Although arrowhead is currently enjoying its moment in the spotlight as a popular indoor plant, its origins is actually as an aquatic perennial that grows above the water level, and offers an ideal nursery for dragonflies. 

In addition, adding flat rocks and stones to your garden create perfect places for dragonflies to sun themselves on. Try placing a variety of flat rocks around the edge of your pond or garden to act as perching places for these special insects.

While adding dragonfly friendly plants is a must for attracting them, so too is taking precautions to avoid chemical based herbicides, pesticides and fertilisers. To ensure that you’re providing a safe environment for them, steering clear of these in favour of a naturally produced alternative is the recommended choice – but where do you find one?

Introducing A Safer Way To Spray

Bioweed is an organic, non selective weed killer that works fast on contact with the weed, in order to rapidly desiccate and burn even the most stubborn of plants. It can be used anywhere around the house including garden beds, veggie patches, paths and driveways, and is safe to use around children, animals and even native wildlife. 

The best part? Bioweed is the brainchild of well established agricultural leaders greenPRO, and is backed by over twenty years of research and development. Owned and manufactured in Australia, the primary ingredient of Bioweed is actually sustainably sourced pine oil, and is even approved by NASAA, ACO and APVMA for use around organic farms and food production. 

If you’re on the hunt for a nature friendly weed killer, or simply want to know more about eliminating weeds safely – check out other tips and tricks in our online advice forum, or contact us for any further queries.