Nature's Good Guys 25 Live Cryptolaemus Montrouzieri - Guaranteed Live Delivery!

I bought these live bugs to handle a mealybug infestation on my outdoor jatropha plant, in Florida. Last time I had a mealybug infestation on the plant I had to cut it all the way back, losing all the foliage and the shade it provided, as well as nectar for the bees and butterflies. I was determined to save the foliage this time, and had already tried a few remedies like water jet spray, neem oil treatment and insecticidal soap. They all failed so I decided to step up the game and order these live mealybug destroyer bugs. The first challenge was to figure out if the 25 bugs were enough for my one plant. I contacted the vendor by email directly through their website. The response was fairly quick, but hard to apply to my situation as they just responded with 1 bug per square foot for a light infestation and 2 bugs per square foot for a heavy infestation. When I asked again for my situation, they just told me "farmers just use square footage of land for row crops" and I may need to adjust for the size of my plant - not helpful. But I figured that 25 bugs ought to be at least double what I needed. I was unsure if I should order from their website or on Amazon. They offer two shipping methods on their website - 2-day deliver or overnight. I had read somewhere that the bugs need overnight delivery to stay alive. I sent another email to ask and was told that overnight shipping is necessary and they thought it was the only option available on their website (not true). Ordering from their website is about $8 cheaper for 2-day delivery than the standard shipping on Amazon, but an extra $10 for overnight. Since they said the overnight delivery is necessary and their only option, I figured that must be how they ship their Amazon orders, so I ordered from Amazon. Turns out, they shipped 2-day UPS delivery. And UPS delayed the shipment by an extra day halfway to delivery for some unexplained reason, so the bugs were in shipment for three days total. Fortunately the bugs arrived all alive and active, even though the ice packs included in the box were completely out of cold. I also asked about when they do their shipping so I could plan for their arrival. They said that they harvest the bugs once a week on Wednesday or Thursday for shipping. So I ordered on a Friday expecting my shipment to go out the following Wednesday or Thursday. Instead it shipped on Monday, so don't expect to predict your shipment regardless of what the seller says. After receiving my package, I carefully released the bugs one by one onto the foliage of my plant, spreading the bugs out across the plant and near the mealybugs. About five hours later, I searched the plant and could find very few of them. I still hoped that enough stayed around to handle the mealybugs, but within a few days it became obvious that the live bugs hadn't made any difference and my plant was done for. These live bugs might be useful for indoor plants, or for outdoors on a farming scale where they are still hitting the target when they fly off from the plant where released. But for the home gardener, they are basically useless and a waste of money.

It didn't take long for them to get here and they all made it alive. I was worried that the Texas heat was going to kill them. I have a mealybug problem and they got to work once I place them in front of the mealybugs. I named them Juan, Jose, Pedro, Mario, Sergio, Miguel, Pepe, Lacho, Francisco, Maria, Juanita, Lucía, Nacho, Sofía, Homero, Ceci, Victoria, Chacho, Diego (he's funny), Alexandra, Rapha, Javier, Calixto, Fernando, and Rod Ryan (after the cool guy from The Buzz).

I didn't unpack these as quickly as I should have so many of them were dead, totally MY fault, not the seller, and I feel bad both for the seller and for the poor bugs. The ones that were alive are DEFINITELY eating my mealybugs, which I have been fighting for well over a year. I have a few plants I'm just not willing to throw out, succulents I've had for many many years, and I've tried everything to get rid of the mealybugs. This is my last resort and it seems to be helping! I have the plants on my porch under a mosquito net to keep the bugs on the plants. I just checked and one little destroyer bug was just walking around and around the edge of a pot, presumably on patrol. I put another succulent with mealybugs on it under the net and put the destroyer bug on the new, infested succulent. Go nuts little fella!

The bugs shipped quickly and everyone arrived alive. I split them between two plants I've been having pest problems with (one mealy bugs, the other scale) and both plants are looking better, and it looks like the pest problem may finally be under control. Trying to figure out what to do with the little guys once their food source runs out! Would definitely recommend if you're looking for a natural way to deal with mealy bugs.

Delivery was prompt, packaging (with ice packs) excellent and bugs were all alive and well and have already eaten away a lot of my mealybug infestation. Ordered several times and have been happy every time.

These came well packed and eager to munch. But they did not seem to settle in and clear the mealy bugs over more than a couple days. I was using them on some big plants in my home, so maybe they would work better in a greenhouse or outside. I had good luck with lady bugs and aphids last year - that was magic! - but the lady bugs aren’t up to dealing with mealybugs effectively.

Not sure what to think. The first batch was dead but 5. They flocked to my windows and two days later I couldn't find them. The seller replaced them and the second batch were alive. I put five on each five foot plant and never saw any of them again. I've been looking through my plants and still cannot find them. So, I'm not sure if they died and the neem oil took care of the mealybugs or if these little guys did it. I'm pretty sure they died because I've looked through every leaf.

Followed directions. All gone. Never saw even one. Get diluted vinegar and water to spray on.