Wonderful article! Always willing to follow a fellow gardener.
I saw a massive praying mantis outside the grocery store this morning and couldn't help but wish for it to hang around my yard instead of parking lots. Had a terrible problem with grasshoppers this year and our mantis eggs never hatched!
Plenty of ladybugs around, though, and have yet to run into problems with aphids. Love these permaculture-related posts and hope to read more.