Preventing Pests in an Herb Garden
Good Insects versues Bad Insects
For the gardener the most annoying things is insects
and animals destroying your precious garden and all your hard
work. While many insects destroy plants be sure you are
not killing the insects that are beneficial to your garden.
Do research for each of you plants and write down
the insects that are beneficial to your garden and find natural
ways to repel the bad insects and animals that may harm your
garden.
Do not use chemicals to keep away the pest since
you will be using these herbs to heal yourself or your family
you will be introducing harmful chemicals to your family and
will be outweighing all the good if you use chemicals to fight
pests.
Good Insects:
-
Praying Mantids:
are a great way to protect your plants as they will eat
any insect that comes into your garden.
-
Wasps: can also
be beneficial to some of your plants as they will eat the
aphids and are pollinators, so they will help you populate
your herb garden.
-
Ladybugs:
are another great insect to have in your herb garden because
they can eat up to 50 or 60 aphids a day.
-
Adult Lacewings and their offspring:
Adult lacewings will only feed on pollen and nectar.
Their larvae are great to have because they are avid predators
of aphids and other pest insects.
Try to attract these good insects by providing them
with food and shelter and they will cut your work in half on
cutting down on the bad insects.
Bad Insects:
-
Aphids: They
are tiny, sap-sucking, soft bodied insects that feed on
a variety of plants and they tend to be bear the growing
tips of plants and on the undersides of the leaves.
They can leave a trail of sugary excrement.
-
Japenese Beetles:
They are shiny, metallic blue-green beetles with bronze
wing covers and they feed on many annuals, perrenials, and
shrubs. They will eat the green part of the leaves
and only leave behind the veins of the leaves.
-
Leafminers: Are
tiny larvae of small flies that will tunnel inside your
leaves leaving a light colored trail on the surface of the
leaf.
-
Spider Mites:
These spider like pests attack plants, especially in hot
dry climates. They look brown or pinkish red or green
mites and they make webs on plants and suck the sap from
the underside of the leaf, causing it to look speckled and
curl.
-
Slugs and Snails:
Usually you only have a problem with slugs and snails in
damp gardens and climates. They can chew holes in
your leaves, stems or flowers and are easy to spot because
they leave a trail of slim behind them.
-
Thrips: Thrips
are minute, quick moving insects that will feed on your
flowers and leaves. You will know when you plants have been
affected by these pests because your palnt will have a pal
and silvery look in the damaged area.
There are many pests that you may have to look out
for. This is just a basic list. The best way to
find out what pests are dominant in your area is to talk to
a local garden center and ask them what pests you need to look
out for and what can you do to prevent them from harming your
herb garden.
Managing Insect Pests
There are many herbs that you can plant in your
herb garden that will repel insect pests such as Pennyroyal.
Plant these in between your other herbs to keep out the pests.
Be sure to check your plants at least once a week
for harmful pests and take action to get rid of them.
Be sure that your garden is set up for your area and that you
have built up the area with organic matter and well drained
areas.
When you notice that the pest population is growing
try to stay away for a while as they will drawn in the good
insects who will in turn eat your pests. If you have to spray
please choose a product that is organic in nature or is forumulated
only for the pests you have identified with.
Be sure to read the Simple Solutions part of
this website for homemade pest control and other tips and trick
to help you keep your garden healthy and growing.
Be sure you plant all your herbs at the recommended
length in between plants as this allows air to circulate and
less protection for the bad insects.
|