No gardener wants to see insects and to cause havoc to their flower beds and farms. Insects can be a menace, and it’s good to be armed with the right knowledge to protect your garden from these annoying invaders. Nothing ruins your yard and garden more than weeds do. Weeds can rob your plants of their vital nutrients and space. To prevent and protect your garden from weeds attack, here are essential and effortless steps you can take today;
Build Healthy Soil
The soil is essential in the supply of nutrients, oxygen, water and root support to plants as they need all these to thrive. One of the best ways to prevent pest problems is to build healthy soil. You can make healthy soil by limiting soil disturbance which leaves the soil surface bare. Practices such as crop rotation, mulching and adding composite can protect your soil.
Attract Beneficial Predators
Did you know you can protect your garden from attack by attracting only the beneficial predators? Beneficial predators include bees, ladybugs, spiders, praying mantis among others. Harmful ones include cabbage worms, mites, cabbage moths, cutworms among others. When you keep your garden diversified, you encourage year-round blooming which in turn attracts various types of beneficial insects.
You should monitor your garden at all times. You should keenly observe and watch your crops from the harmful effects of pests, irrespective of how healthy the plants look like. Check the undersides of your crop leaves to ensure that there are no bugs hiding or layers of eggs awaiting hatching. If your plants are under attack, you will see deformed leaves, discolored leaves, others chewed and some with abnormal growth as a result of leaf galls.
Mechanical Pest Solutions
Devise mechanical pest solutions to avert the damage these creatures cause. You can use simple equipment and natural ingredients that provide a protective barrier between different plants and insects. Some of the critical obstacles include fences and nets that can keep animals away. You can try handpicking and plucking pests and their egg sacks. You can also lay traps to catch or lure pests away from plants.
Don’t forget the importance of chemical solutions such as organic pesticides. Note that you should only use approved chemicals. When using chemicals, start with the least toxic solutions such as garlic, corn gluten, kaolin clay, gibberellic acid among others. The moderately toxic ones include neem, boric acid, adjuvants among others.