Proper Insect And Pest Control

Unless you're in the Garden of Eden, it is impossible to grow a garden free of insects or pests. There are several ways to control these little creatures that enjoy ruining the garden you've worked long and hard to plant.

The first way to start insect and pest control in your garden is to purchase seeds from a gardening store instead of reusing the seeds you already have.

The benefit is many of these purchased seeds will have built-in resistance to disease and pests. Another strategy to prevent insects and disease from destroying your plants is to rotate any vegetable crops yearly. Also make sure your garden gets plenty of sun. Once you have covered these three bases, you can get started on planting and watching your garden grow.

Finding plants that need minimal insect and pest control is helpful to gardeners who may not have lots of time to devote to garden maintenance. Asparagus, blueberries, leafy greens and onions meet these low insect and pest control requirements. Apples, squash and cucumbers will require more insect and pest control, so decide how much time you're willing to devote to this job.

While you're enjoying and basking in your glorious, growing garden, you will likely notice several species of bugs doing the same. Before you grab that can of pesticide, remember your garden is a natural, living thing. You wouldn't enjoy someone coming by and spraying you with a can of mixed chemicals, so don't do it to your garden. There are plenty of natural ways to ensure a harmonious balance between your garden and the insects that live there. It helps to know the difference between good and bad bugs.

Bad Bugs

1. The Flea Beetle is a small brown or black beetle that leaps like a flea. It chews on plant leaves, leaving small holes all over the plant.

2. The Colorado Potato Beetle is a hard-shelled, round beetle with an orange dotted head. It also chews leaves. The best defense against these is to hand-pick them off your plants.

3. Slugs are another crop criminal that look like a snail without a shell. These little devils eat leaves and chew out holes in fruits, roots and stems. Placing a saucer of beer at ground level will help defend against these pests.

4. Aphids are small, soft-bodied, tear-shaped insects that come in a variety of colors. They suck juices from stems and leaves, weakening the plant and spreading disease. Keep your plants healthy; these bugs love yellowing leaves.

Good Bugs
If you're experiencing a bug infestation that seems to be ruining your little piece of paradise, the last thing you want to do is let more bugs in your garden, right? Wrong. Actually, if you release beneficial creatures like lady bugs, lacewings or praying mantis, they will storm your garden and eat bad bugs like aphids, mealy bugs, spider mites and leaf worms. These little soldiers are natural insect and pest control machines that do much of your dirty work for you.

Organic Gardening
Many gardeners, especially organic gardeners, realize that it is usually humans who infringe on the habitat of wild animals, not the other way around. Chemicals are not only hazardous to the animals beneficial to your garden, they can also pose a risk to you, your family and even your pets. A long time ago, farmers did not use pesticides and they would still manage to grow an abundance of crops every year.

Try some of these natural methods to ensure your garden is filled with healthy, beautiful crops and plants.

1. A big step in insect and pest control is to check your garden often to catch any problems early.

2. Get your hands dirty. Manual methods of insect and pest control such as pulling weeds, picking off and disposing of pests by hand, pulling off infested leaves and hoeing to control weeds are all tried-and- true ways to keep your garden in tip-top shape.

3. Choose plants native to your area; they are already adapted to the local climate conditions.

4. Keep your soil healthy. Adding compost or well-aged manure is good for insect and pest control.

5. Diversify your plants and leave enough space between each plant.

6. Planting a border of wormwood around your garden helps to deter larger animals from entering, helping with insect and pest control.

Many gardeners also do something called companion planting to help with insect and pest control. This means that by planting certain plants near one another, they actually help each other grow and also help with insect and pest control.