Gardening - Pest Control

Little is as discouraging as walking to your garden and finding it crawling with critters. This will happen, but it need not be a disaster. Accept the fact that you will find some bugs and realize that a few won't hurt. If you see birds, frogs, and spiders near by, sit tight. They eat a lot of bugs and may keep things reasonably under control. Again, as long as  there is not a major infestation, and your plants are healthy, a few chomps here and there by some bugs are not a big deal.

However, in our noisy, modern cities, sometimes, natural pest predators are not to be found. Then, you need to be vigilant. When 1 or 2 bugs begin multiplying, you must take action. What to do? Well, the simplest, cheapest and safest thing is to put a spray nozzle on a hose, blast them off and then step on the little creatures, or, if they are large enough, just knock them off with your hand and squash them. Then, keep an eye out; they may have left eggs and, if you start seeing little ones, repeat the above procedures.

However, if you find the prospect of squashing bugs unappealing, you will need chemical intervention. Probably the safest are the insecticidal soaps. They work fairly well, but remember, they will kill beneficial insects so don't spray when you see bees buzzing around. From there, you  move to harsher and harsher chemicals. I hate the idea of harsh chemicals but if worms are devouring my cabbage, I will use them. Caution: Please use them only as directed, wear goggles, a mask, and gloves and don't spray on a windy day. Also, use chemical insecticides sparingly. Remember, healthy plants can stand a few bugs here and there.

Fungus and molds are a different matter. Water and mulch properly and you may never have these problems, again, healthy plants can stand a little damage. If fungus and mulch become widespread, you have 2 choices. Invest a lot of time and money in the proper chemical treatments or dig the plants up and burn them. I recommend the latter since, if you don't kill every bit of the problem, it will come back and it will spread. Do not compost infected plants, the heat generated in composting may not kill all of the spores. Just burn the plants, then treat the soil with the proper chemicals.

Once again, a black spot on a leaf or a caterpillar crawling on your squash is not cause for panic, but you do need to watch things. Always start with the safest easiest treatment, and only resort to powerful chemicals as a last resort.