There is something wonderful about heading into your garden when it’s full of flowers, the birds are chirping, and the sun is shining. This is particularly true if you have made the effort to create the flower beds and nurture the plants yourself.
Of course, this scene can be quickly ruined if your plants have been attacked by pests. That’s why you need to protect your garden from pests before you even start planting.
Know Your Enemy
You can’t fight pests unless you know what you’re fighting! That is why your first step should be to contact your local pest control experts, you can find out more about them here. The local pest control specialists don’t just deal with termites and rodents in your home. The biggest role is actually preventing pests from entering your home and garden. As such, they have knowledge and experience of the pests in your vicinity and the ones you should be most concerned about.
Identifying the issue will make it easier to protect your plants. Just remember they are different in every area. It’s worth checking out whether you’re dealing with squash bugs or aphids.
Consider Predators
Every pest is prey for another pest. The question is if you want to eliminate a pest, is their predator beneficial for your garden or not? If they are, then you can introduce the predator to your garden.
There are two ways to do this.
1. Add The Predator
If you can source predators locally and can capture them, you may be able to bring them to your garden and release them. Your hope will be that they like the garden and stay, effectively eliminating your pests in the process.
2. Create the Environment
The alternative, and generally the better option, is to understand what type of environment attracts the predator and then create it in your garden. This will ensure they arrive naturally and take care of your pests for you.
Pesticides
You can use pesticides to kill pests on your plants. This is effective but you’ll want to make sure the pesticides don’t negatively affect the plants, especially if they are crops you’re likely to eat.
Consider your use of pesticides carefully before resorting to them. They can be detrimental to the environment.
Crop Rotation
Whether you’re planting flowers or crops, if you plant the same stuff in the same spot every year, pests will know where to come. Instead, you need to rotate them, changing their location will make it less likely that you’ll have a pest issue.
Remove Weeds & Debris
Weeds will always appear, as will debris from plants and other sources. It’s advisable to remove this type of waste instantly to avoid it attracting pests. Decaying plant matter is very appealing to many pests and most of them you don’t want near your plants.
The bottom line is simple, vigilance and a process of trial and error, along with professional help. That’s all it takes to keep the pests away.
