Organic pest control for your garden is not as tricky as you might imagine! Here are some simple solutions for those interested in learning how to control garden pests through organic techniques. Ron Corning from Howdini.com talks through basic methods with Scott Meyer, organic garden expert and editor of Organic Gardening magazine.

One of the first questions people ask is whether insects can ruin your garden or vegetable patch. Scott explains that 80% of bugs or insects are beneficial to your garden. This is because they eat other insects and therefore help to keep a balance in the garden insect population. If you use synthetic pesticides, they will kill all bugs, both good and bad. This disrupts the delicate and natural eco-system in your garden, destroying beneficial insects and also harming the wildlife such as birds that feed on insects.

So what should you use in place of chemical pesticides? Scott suggests the first thing to do is to observe the insects. Are they really destroying your vegetable crop? Or are they simply feeding on your plants but not actually damaging them? A broccoli leaf that has been munched a lot by insects is used as an example. He explains that the actual head of broccoli is fine. In such a case there is no need to overreact and remove the insects that feed on broccoli leaves.

Ron and Scott review several organic products that can help reduce pests if there is a genuine problem. The first product is pure peppermint oil, which kills certain insects that harm roses. The oil also works in controlling fungus problems as well, but doesn’t harm other insects or wildlife in the garden. Garlic oil and insect soap are two other products that are considered.

To prevent insects actually reaching your plants, use a row cover. This is a special type of fabric that covers plants and vegetables, allowing in all the nutrients needed such as air, sunlight and water, but stops insect access.

If you want to encourage birds to your garden to help control the insect population, Scott recommends a simple solution, install a birdbath! Also, grow flowers. Insects will be attracted to the flowers, which will in turn provide tasty meals for wild birds.

Should you have a grub problem, Scott suggests using an organic product called ‘Milky Spore’. This is a bacteria which kills grubs, but won’t harm insects or wildlife. Very few applications are needed as the bacteria remains in the soil, and prevents grubs from returning.

For larger pests such as deer, the simplest recommendation is to erect a fence. In the case of deer an angled fence works best as the deer won’t know where they can land! Other options include strong smelling soap, reflective tape or anything that has motion. Animals are most likely to be deterred if they see lots of movement in the garden.

This really is a useful video that shows some simple tactics for anyone new to organic gardening. What is particularly useful is that it reveals how easy it is to implement organic pest control in your garden.

Filed under: Organic Farming

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