You might not like spiders. But you want them in your garden

Drenched in dew, a black and yellow Argiope (orb weaver) spider waits for breakfast to come her way at LeRoy Oakes Forest Preserve in St. Charles. Courtesy of Valerie Blaine

All habitats depend on predators to keep things in balance. Your garden is a habitat full of wildlife, and while predators like the praying mantis and the ladybug tend to be celebrated, there’s another that’s more often reviled: the spider.

While only a small percentage of the general population has a full-on case of arachnophobia, plenty of people find spiders just plain creepy. They lurk in dark corners, drop from above without warning and have a tendency to go scurrying around in a way many might find disconcerting. Pop culture has long painted the spider as the enemy — a furry, fanged foe to be feared.

But spid