Our gardens are constantly under siege by pests that only seek to damage our goods. And while insects and other critters greatly outnumber us, there are ways to combat them and keep our veggies and fruits safe.
Most of the techniques to combat pests are graciously provided by Mother Nature herself. And while there are methods and other human-made means to do so, it’s the non-toxic ways that provide the best results for both us and our garden.
In this article, we are going to discuss the methods and techniques to easily get rid of pests.
1. Healthy Soil
If we want our plants to be healthy, then they require healthy soil full of water, oxygen, and nutrients that support their development. A healthy plant means that diseases and insects will find it harder to infest, and it’s all down to the soil.
If you want healthy soil, then you need to focus on these next four methods, which are:
· Limit the Soil Disturbance
By keeping the soil disturbance to a minimum you are effectively preventing critters, pests, and microorganisms from harming it. This can effectively be done by annually turning it. Science and research shows that performing turning at least once a year shows numerous benefits for your plants.
· Add Mulch
Another way to keep the soil healthy is to add a few inches of organic mulch (grass clippings or mowed leaves) whenever the plant in question reaches around five inches of height.
Mulch offers plants many benefits, and can mostly be categorized as surprising the growth of weeds, reduces water evaporation, keeps the soil temperature balanced, and adds the much-needed nutrients.
· Regular Compost
Whenever spring arrives, add a two-inch layer of decomposed composed on top of the soil to supply it with the much-needed nutrients. Not only that but regular compost also positively impacts the structure of the soil.
· Rotate Crops
There is a clear reason why farmers rotate between crop families each yield. The reason is that pests tend to stick to those soils that regularly feature the same crop. By rotating between crop families you are eliminating pest populations and keeping the soil healthy.
2. Use Nature’s Predators
Look critters are definitely bad for your garden, but that doesn’t include very insect or bug.
The natural food chain includes bugs, and bugs tend to eat other bugs. So, there are insects and bugs out there that can help you maintain your garden pest-free. Whenever you spot one of these, do know that they aren’t harming your crops and plants.
The following and insects that you should encourage and promote to your garden:
- Bees
- Spiders
- Rraying mantis
- Small pirate bugs
- Parasitic wasps
- Earwigs
- Ants
- Centipedes
- predator flies
- ground beetles
- green lacewings
- and ladybugs.
Make sure to stock your garden with lots of these, as each one specializes in eliminating a specific bad type of insect.
However, the bad insects, that harm your plants, include:
- Tomato hornworms
- Cabbage months
- Cabbage worms
- Mites
- Slugs and snails
- Cutworms
- Flea beetles
- Whiteflies
- Aphids
- Carrot rush flies
- Squash vine borers
- Mexican bean beetles
- and Parsley worms.
Planting the following plants can greatly attract insects that can combat harmful ones. These plants include:
- Tansy
- Daisy
- Fennel
- Mint
- Carrot
- Zinnia
- Coriander
- Parsley
- marigolds
Sometimes, eliminating pests can only be done by professional experts. If you’re looking for the best one around the Sydney area, then make sure to visit expertpestcontrol.com.au.
3. Techniques to Use that Keep the Garden Pest-Free
There are techniques that involve creating a barrier between the outside world and your plants to provide them with much-needed safety.
The techniques in question include:
· Barriers
Anything from placing nets, fences, and even paper collars are more than capable of preventing small insects and bugs from landing on your plants. Whenever you’re on the market for such, make sure to get ones that let sunshine pass through, but keeps the insects out.
As a general rule of thumb, you cannot keep any barrier on at all times, since they also prevent pollination.
· Do It Yourself
Every once in a while some of the pests can get through our first line of defense, so it’s up to us to finish the job. By simply taking a walk through your garden, you can notice the eggs laid by some of the harmful insects. When in this case, simply pluck out the egg sacks and remove any visible insects.
· Traps
Traps are super-popular contraptions that can easily be purchased at your local garden store, and you can even make some of them on your own.
Traps are essentially what the name suggests; they are used to lure them away and remove effectively by some means.
When it comes to browsing them, the options are plenty. However, the best part is that you can nearly create all of them by simply following DIY-style articles and videos.
4. Natural, Kitchen Remedies to Use
And of course, you can always do the job using nothing but remedies that you can find in-around your kitchen.
However, before applying the following, you should always try and test them on a few plants to see if they work.
With all that said, testing is important but also is knowledge.
Some of the most popular natural remedies to use include:
- Garlic to eliminate nearly every type of harmful insect from your plants
- Banana and orange peels to take care of ants (yes, they can be bad)
- Cinnamon for growing fungus
- Milk for tomatoes, cucumbers, and other plants to take care of mildew
- Vinegar for the small, greenish aphids
- Hot peppers and ginger for taking care of not only nearly every insect but also rodents
- Baking soda also for growing fungus
- Beer to take care of snails and slugs
- And eggshells for cutworms and many other insects
