Protecting your vegetable garden from pests
Pests can be extremely annoying for any gardener. They kill your plants and destroy everything that you have worked so hard for. There are lots of different ways to protect your garden from pests. Using all of them will work perfectly but using just some will also help to protect your vegetable garden from pests.
First off, at the end of winter, you need to prepare your garden. Rake through the soil gently looking for any pests or damage that has been done. This way you will know what kinds of pests will creep up next season. You don't have to rake through all the soil, just a few inches down. If you have plants in the soil from the season before, be extra careful. You don't want to destroy them, but just make sure that they are doing ok.
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Pests come in all different sizes and shapes. Aphids are some of the most common garden bugs. If you find aphids in your garden, either spray the leaves of your plants down with some water, it will get rid of them without using harsh chemicals, or get some lady bugs. You can always use anti-aphid sprays but remember, the spray will get on your plants. You may not want that on your vegetables that you are growing.
There are lots of natural ways to repel pests in your vegetable garden. You can find most of them in your kitchen. Here is a list of some of the most common herbs and what they repel.
Thyme repels the cabbage worm.
Mint repels ants and the cabbage moth.
Catnip repels the flea beetle.
Horseradish repels potato bugs (roly polys).
Garlic repels the Japanese beetle.
Basil repels mosquitoes and flies.
Rosemary repels the cabbage moth, carrot fly, and bean beetles.
Marigold repels the tomato worm, asparagus beetles, and most garden pests.
If you don't know what type of insects that you have, you can just make a mixture and sprinkle it all over your garden, or plant the plants that the spices come from. Or, to add some color to your garden, plant some marigolds to help get rid of the pests and bring color to your garden.
Check your garden for pests at least once a week. You will be able to stop them easier when they first come than when a whole ton are there invading your garden. If you have a specific problem with a certain pest, go to your local greenhouse. They will be able to tell you what exactly is the best way to get rid of a pest. They will also know which ones are around the most in your area.
The trick to protecting your garden is to prepare. Plant marigolds and some mint. They will help you keep away bugs that you don't want. You don't want to have to spray your garden or watch it be destroyed because you didn't plan ahead. Most of the time bugs enter your garden. They might destroy only a few cabbages or carrots, but the problem could get bigger. Make sure you rake your garden before you start planting and before you do anything else. You might want to also put down a layer of protection, like peat moss, during the early spring to help give your garden a boost before you start planting.
