Probably one of the most rewarding skills gained when learning how to start a garden is what to do about pest control. Proper planning before you even put a plant or seed in the ground can pay dividends in the growth process when you have few pests to contend with. There are a few ways to organically use pest control in your garden.
Companion planting is a great way to minimize or eliminate pests before they even know you have a garden for them to try to invade. Companion planting is about putting plants together that compliment each other because they provide nutrients their neighbor needs, or they provide and environment their neighbor needs such as protection or shade, or they repel pests or attract beneficial insects that will prey on their neighbors pest.
When using companion planting for pest control, you want to make sure that the plants you put together will repel common pests or attract beneficial insects that prey on the neighboring plants pest. One example is ladybugs eat aphids. If you are planning to have plants that attract aphids, such as roses, it would be wise to also put in plants like fennel, dill, cilantro, caraway, angelica, tansy, wild carrot, yarrow,cosmos (especially the white ones), coreopsis, scented geraniums, or dandelions to attract ladybugs.
Another way to control the pests that you still may have even if you’ve minimized them with companion planting is to use a mixture of water with a little dish How To Prevent Pests In Plants soap, and/or garlic, hot peppers, onion and mint. Garlic repels many pests, including mosquitoes, and will also help repel some animals such as rabbits.
Neem oil is another water based spray that can be used. Mix some neem oil with water in a spray bottle. It is safe for you and the plants you spray, but the pests don’t like it.
Diatomaceous earth is a last resort. While it is safe for humans, as a pesticide it not only kills the bad insects, it also kills the beneficial insects. It is to an insect like swallowing chopped up razor blades to a human beings, and should only be considered in the worst infestations, if you don’t want to upset the balance of your beneficial insects.
When you’re learning or deciding how to start a garden, pre-planning your pest control Vinegar Pest Control will result in a happier more rewarding experience for you, and your garden.
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