Green Lacewing Adults - Chrysoperla rufilabris
How To Say It: kriss-oh-PER-luh roo-fih-LAB-ris
They find pest colonies and lay eggs beside them, starting new generations of aphid-hunting larvae.
Covering a big garden, greenhouse, or orchard with lacewing eggs or larvae by hand takes time. Adult green lacewings can do the work for you. Once released, green lacewing adults fly through your growing space looking for aphid colonies and other soft-bodied pests. They lay their eggs right next to them, so each hatch starts where the food is.
Adults don't eat pests themselves. They live on nectar, pollen, and honeydew. Their job is to lay eggs. Each female can lay up to 200 eggs, so a single release can mean waves of predatory larvae. Choose adults when you want broad, ongoing coverage across a large area rather than an immediate knockdown in a smaller space.
What Green Lacewing Adults Are
Chrysoperla rufilabris is a beneficial insect native to North America. The adult is the stage most people recognize: a slim, bright green insect about ½–¾ inch long, with see-through, net-veined wings and coppery-gold eyes. You've likely seen them fluttering near porch lights on summer evenings. They're gentle and harmless to people, pets, and plants. The hunting happens in the next generation, when the eggs hatch into the striped, alligator-shaped larvae known as "aphid lions."
Pests Their Offspring Target
- Aphids
- Whiteflies
- Spider mites
- Thrips
- Mealybugs
- Scale (crawlers)
- Small caterpillars
- Psyllids
- Many other insect eggs and immature or soft-bodied stages
How Adults Deliver Pest Control
Adults move freely across a large area and use the scent of aphid honeydew to find pest colonies. There they lay eggs on thin silk stalks, which keeps the eggs off the leaf surface and away from newly hatched siblings. When the larvae emerge, they're already surrounded by prey. As long as the adults are active, new eggs can appear near the places pests are building up.
When to Use Adult Green Lacewings
- Large areas: greenhouses, orchards, field crops, and big gardens where hand-placing eggs or larvae isn't practical
- Scattered pest pressure: colonies spread across many plants, including spots you might miss
- Long-term programs: building a lacewing population that keeps producing new predators over several weeks
- Pairing with a quick fix: release larvae for immediate knockdown on hot spots, then add adults to keep new generations coming
For a single plant, a small bed, or pests that are already causing heavy damage, Green Lacewing Larvae or Green Lacewing Eggs will get to work faster.
Where Adults Fit in the Life Cycle
Egg → larva → pupa → adult.
Adults are the final, reproductive stage. They live roughly 4–6 weeks, feeding on nectar, pollen, and honeydew while laying eggs near pest colonies. Those eggs hatch into larvae, which hunt for 2–3 weeks before pupating and emerging as the next generation of adults.
Temperature Range
Green lacewing adults adapt to a wide range of conditions, but temperature controls how actively they move, feed, and lay eggs.
- Below 60°F: Movement, feeding, and egg-laying slows significantly. In cool weather, adults become inactive and may enter an overwintering state, sometimes shifting color in regions with mild winters.
- 68–90°F: Peak activity range, with adults performing best at 68–82°F. Conditions with high humidity are ideal for egg-laying and fast life cycle development.
- Above 95°F: Adults can handle short bursts of summer heat, but sustained temperatures above 95°F effect development and cause egg-laying to drop sharply.
Once hatched, the larvae hunt between 54–95°F, with peak activity at 59–82°F.
Application Rates
These are general starting points. Actual application should be adjusted based on pest pressure, pest species, plant type, and infestation severity.
| Package Size | Coverage (at 1 adult per 10 sq. ft.) |
| 100 Adults | Up to 1,000 sq. ft. |
| 250 Adults | Up to 2,500 sq. ft. |
| 1k Adults | Up to 10,000 sq. ft. (about ¼ acre) |
For field-scale plantings, use roughly 5,000 green lacewing adults per acre.
Release Instructions
- Release on the day your order arrives, in the early morning or evening, when temperatures are cooler and adults are calmer.
- Walk through your growing area, open the container, and gently tap it to let adults out a few at a time.
- Use the lid to control how many leave at once, so they spread across the whole area instead of all in one spot.
- Focus releases near plants showing pest activity.
Help Adults Stay and Lay
Adults need nectar, pollen, or honeydew to stay healthy and keep laying eggs. Flowering plants nearby help. So does a supplemental food like our Good Bug Diet, especially early in the season or in greenhouses with few blooms.
Pairing & Compatibility
Lacewings cover a lot of ground above the soil, but no single predator handles every pest in every zone. Pairing them with specialists and soil-dwellers closes the gaps.
Foliar Partners
- Green Lacewing Larvae: immediate knockdown on hot spots while adults build the next generations.
- Amblyseius swirskii – thrips and whitefly eggs and nymphs
- Orius insidiosus (Minute Pirate Bug) – a generalist that hunts thrips at every life stage plus mites and aphid eggs
- Cryptolaemus montrouzieri (Mealybug Destroyer) – for heavier mealybug loads
- Aphidius colemani / Aphidius ervi – aphid parasitoids that lay eggs inside live aphids
- Lindorus lophanthae or Aphytis melinus – dedicated scale control, since lacewing larvae go after scale crawlers but aren't a full solution for established scale populations
- Trichogramma spp. – parasitizes moth eggs before they hatch
- Predatory mites - controls pest mites, including the two-spotted spider mite
- Ladybugs (Hippodamia convergens) - generalist predator for eggs and soft-bodied stages of pest insects
Soil-Dwelling Partners
Covering the pests where green lacewings don't reach.
- Hypoaspis miles (Stratiolaelaps scimitus) – patrols the top layer of soil for fungus gnat larvae, thrips pupae, and other soil-stage pests
- Dalotia coriaria (Rove Beetle) – a fast-moving generalist in the growing medium
- Beneficial Nematodes (Sf) – target thrips pupae and fungus gnat larvae in the soil
Safe, Sustainable Pest Management
- 100% natural
- Safe around people and pets, and safe for edible plants
- IPM-compatible
- No protective equipment required
Storage
Adults are best released the day they arrive and are not suited to storage. If a short delay can't be avoided, keep the container cool and out of direct sunlight, and release as soon as possible.
FAQs
Do green lacewing adults eat aphids?
No. Adults feed on nectar, pollen, and honeydew. The pest control comes from their offspring. Adults lay eggs near pest colonies, and the larvae that hatch are the ones that hunt aphids and other soft-bodied pests.
How long before I see results from adults?
Expect a lag. Adults need time to find pests and lay eggs, and the eggs take several days to two weeks to hatch, depending on temperature. For faster results, pair adults with a larvae release.
Will the adults fly away?
Adults are strong fliers and will spread out, making them useful for large areas. Releasing near pest activity and providing a food source like flowers or supplemental food encourages them to stay and lay eggs where you need them.
Can I use lacewing adults indoors or in a greenhouse?
Yes. Adults work well in greenhouses and larger indoor growing spaces, where they stay close to your plants. In a very small space, such as a few houseplants, eggs or larvae are usually the better fit.
What should I do about ants?
Ants protect aphid colonies and will eat lacewing eggs. Control ant activity before or alongside your release so the eggs the adults lay have a chance to hatch.
Can I use insecticides alongside lacewings?
Broad-spectrum and systemic insecticides are toxic to lacewings. Wetting agents and spreader-stickers can also harm them. Avoid these products before and during your lacewing program.