- HubPages»
- Home and Garden»
- Gardening»
- Organic Gardening
How to control garden pests naturally
ladybug
- Garden Insects
Ladybugs, praying mantis, and other beneficial garden insects provide safe natural biological solutions to pest control problems for all your garden pests.
common garden creatures
- Common garden creatures
pictures of garden creatures with details of their life-cycles, friendly garden creatures, garden pests, and how to deal with them using pesticides or other control methods such as biological control using parasites and other predators.
the gardeners kitchen
A gardener’s nightmare is to step out into the backyard and
discover the garden, that has been so carefully crafted, has been eaten by
something other than the gardener.
This nightmare can be prevented and garden pests need not be
a major concern if you take a few steps and apply some organic pest control
methods.
The first step is to get over any fear you may have of bugs;
the ones roaming in your garden may be gardening allies and not foes to
vanquish. The second step is to identify some of the more common bugs in your
region. Spiders are most welcome as they
will devour other insects and help keep you garden’s insect population in
proper balance.
Ants ( Lasisus Niger) are also useful, as long as
they stay outside, they make a good biological control for aphids as ants herd
aphids much like humans do cattle and for similar reasons.
Organic gardening methods provide you with all the skills
and knowledge you need to keep your garden in balance and that is just what a
thriving garden is an ecosystem in balance.
The gardener’s role, after the garden beds are made, is to
maintain that balance and while this may require a bit of reading; companies such as Rodale
publish a number of very helpful books, and some effort on your part, your
reward will be a garden that is safe for children to play in and one that
produces vegetables you can eat without consuming any poison.
If you follow the two fundamental garden rules; right plant
right place and feed the soil, you are on your way to a balanced garden.
The balanced garden will almost look after itself as the
beneficial insects such as lady bugs are out on patrol, helping you keep the
bugs that want to eat your lettuce before you do in check.
Another important step to take is spending time walking
about your garden and observing. You will see the relationships taking place
and are in a position to spot any problems before they manifest. Get in the habit
of either wearing your garden gloves or having them handy, that way when you
turn over a leaf and spot something that should not be there you can pick it
off and squish it. There can be a certain satisfaction in doing so; you have
saved the plant and in a plant friendly manner.
In order to keep you garden in balance you will want to add
a variety of plants such as herbs and native flowers even if you are vegetable
gardening. The herbs serve two purposes, some can be left to grow and attract
bees and butterflies to help pollinate and some can add zest to your meals.
The native plants will attract butterflies and if you spend
a bit of time at your public library you can find out what butterflies are
native to your region and what plants they prefer.
An organic or natural garden is home to a wide variety of creatures and for the most part, it is those creatures who will be your front line pest control. Your job is to be vigilant and lend a hand when needed.