At some point, every gardener must deal with pest problems in their yards. Pests are not only irritating, they can spread disease, destroy your plants and undo all of your work and planning. Most people simply pick up a can of insecticide, hold their breath and spray.
Problems with Garden Pests
Now that we know more about the environmental and personal risks associated with the use of chemical insecticides, we must work hard to find alternatives to harsh chemical insecticides. Beneficial insects are a natural way to control unwanted garden pests without harming people, animals or the environment.
Controlling Garden Pests with Beneficial Insects
Many of the pests we don’t want in our gardens have developed a tolerance to traditional chemical methods, while the beneficial insects we do want are being killed off by those same poisonous insecticides. The use of beneficial insects for pest control was a standard practice up until the late 1940s, when chemical methods became the norm for both home gardens and commercial farming operations. Every garden pest has a natural enemy, and introducing those enemies to your garden is the key to successful, natural pest control. If you identify the garden pest and its natural enemy, you can simply release beneficial insects and let nature take its course.
Introducing Beneficial Insects for Natural Garden Pest Control
Beneficial insects are easy to use, they give better long-term results and are a healthy alternative to toxic chemical methods. Many unwanted garden pests, like aphids, mites, scale, and cutworms can be controlled with natural predators like ladybugs, lacewings, praying mantis, and nematodes. Most of these insects are available for purchase at local garden centers or through online catalogs, however simply adding flowering plants like Queen Anne's Lace, yarrow and asters will create an environment that attracts these garden friendly warriors for long term pest control. And, when you stop using toxic chemicals in your yard, natural predators such as ladybugs start to make a comeback on their own, encouraging butterflies and birds to visit your garden more often.
Natural Garden Pest Solutions
Introduce these beneficial insects to your garden and get rid of those awful pests that prey on your plants and keep your garden from reaching its potential:
- Ladybugs: Control aphids, whiteflies, mites, and scale
- Lacewings: Control aphids
- Brachonid Waps and Chalcid Flies: Control leaf eating caterpillars
- Nematodes: Control cutworms
- Praying Mantis: Control general garden pests
Natural Pest Control Resources
Visit Organic Gardening Magazine for more information on the top ten garden pests, natural garden pest control methods and sources for beneficial garden insects.
Andrea Gifford - Andrea Gifford writes about everything from travel to cooking, with articles at USAToday.com, the Santa Cruz Sentinel and Odyssey ...
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