Invasion Of The Plant Snatchers

You wake up one morning, check your garden as usual and discover half your tomato plants are missing their tops.  On closer inspection you discover small piles of what appear to be chewed plants on the remaining leaves. Was this an invasion of miniature bovines from an unknown galaxy?  No, it's just that pesky tomato hornworm caterpillar!

Every summer millions of insects invade our otherwise pristine gardens to do unlimited damage.  What do we do?  We used to reach for that toxic spray can of pesticide, but no more.  It's not safe and it's just not necessary.  You could be doing a whole lot more damage to the environment, your bodies and your plants.  A safer alternative exists.

Nature provides one course you may select - companion planting.  Why not let your plants protect each other?  By selectively planting certain varieties next to each other you can repel a lot of bugs you would really rather not have to deal with.  Of course some bugs are beneficial to your garden.  We'll deal with those later.

Strong smelling plants such as marigolds, nasturtiums, alliums and any mint plant will repel some pests by scent alone.  Planting a row of these or even just a plant or two in every square yard of garden space will do quite a bit in warding off those intruders. 

Garlic contains a compound that will kill pests like aphids, onion flies and mosquitoes.  Unfortunately it also kills some beneficial bugs like lady bugs and lacewings.  If you like garlic or your tomatoes and potatoes are bothered by blight, plant some bulbs throughout your site.  Garlic also has fungicidal and bactericidal properties that have been known to protect these crops from blight.

Plants can also repel bigger pests such as moles or even deer.  Euphorbia lathyrus or mole plant as it is commonly called is a deterrent to mice, moles and gophers.  Deer can be repelled by planting castor beans about six feet from your garden.  Take care in using castor beans.  The plants and seeds are highly toxic and can even kill a child if eaten.  The leaves can be toxic to the skin as well but it is not always the case.  In some people it raises yellow welts where ever it touches.

Marigolds are known to repel almost any pests.  The ground flowers have even been used by some to repel fleas in pet beds.  You should always plant marigolds where you plant root crops.  They will repel nematodes that can cause major damage to your root crops.

There is a wide variety of beneficial insects.  By planting the right flowers and herbs, you can attract more of these bugs to help you defend against the bad ones. 

Cosmos are beautiful purple, white or pink blossoms with fern like foliage.  They are a welcome addition to any flower garden.  Cosmos can also be of immense help in the garden by attracting lady bugs and other beneficials.  The bugs feast on the nectar and the fern like leaves provide a nursery for the little ones.

Slugs are not only slimy but also voracious plant eaters.  There are several ways to control them.  The most popular method is the use of beer traps.  You get them pie-eyed and then you drown them!  Seriously, you leave small tuna sized cans half buried in the soil with a little beer in each can.  The slug is attracted to the yeasty scent, becomes intoxicated and falls in to his demise.  Another method is crushed egg shells or clam shells because they are sharp and cut them so they bleed to death.  Lime or diatomaceous earth repels them.  This is not ordinary earth but the skeletal remains of minute plankton algae.  You can always resort to hand picking and dropping the little demons in soapy water.  The use of copper barrier strips will also work to  repel the slugs.

Fruit trees require pruning for good air circulation to prevent infestations.  A spray of mineral oil will stop the coddling moth when used just when the blossoms are falling.

Soap spray, garlic spray, or hot pepper spray can be used on most plants.   Soap suds will not harm most plants.  The other sprays can be made by grinding the "fruit" in your food processor, adding it to water, straining the whole lot and put it in your sprayer.  Take care to keep it off your hands and out of your eyes.

Bacillus thuringiensis or BTSD as it is commonly known is a  biological control used for a lot of bad bugs but especially useful for halting the Colorado potato beetle larvae.  It is a bacterial decease  of caterpillars and only harmful to insects when they eat treated plants. 

Aphids are like fleas on plants.  Aphids can destroy your plants and make your roses and other cut flowers look disgusting.  They are herded by ants for there "honeydew" a sweet sticky substance.  First you have to get rid of the cowboy ants.  This can be done by pouring boiling water slowly down the ant hills, being careful not to get to close to your plants.  Coffee grounds sprinkled on the ground under your plants can be helpful. Use the hover fly larvae which is an aphid predator that devours 400 aphids during its' span.  Lacewing larvae will eat tons of aphids.

Predatory mites eat spider mites pests of beans, strawberries, grapes and peppers.  Assassin bugs take out leafhoppers.  Paper wasps are the least likely to sting you and are considered to be the "big gun" beneficials.  They are known to pick up whole caterpillars including gypsy moths.

Rotenone is a common substance found in sixty-five different plants.  It works on insects with chewing mouths.  Neem from the seeds of the neem tree can control a wide range of pests and yet is almost non toxic to beneficials.  Pyrethrin is an insect nerve poison from pyrethrum daisies.  It can be purchased or made fresh into a spray.  The leaves from this plant can also be used as a flea repellent.

Now what do we do with that original garden invader from the planet Caterpillar?  Normally we would hunt it down and pluck it off the branch and squash it under a rock, always being careful to look for its' mate.  However, if you see white rice-like eggs sticking out of a caterpillar, leave it alone.  It's the larvae of parasitic wasps that feed on caterpillars.  The wasps are one tenth the size of wasps of the stinging variety and will not hurt you.

You can even buy beneficial bugs though the mail.  Most seed catalogues carry them.  The Green Spot, 193 Priest Road, Nottingham, NH  03290 deals mainly in good bugs.  You can get their catalogue for four dollars.