Managing the Pests that Pester Us

By T. C. Conner

We all want those pesky buggers to stay out of our gardens. But how in the world are we supposed to deal with so many of them? And how are we supposed to know which ones are bad and which ones are good?

At the first sign of a problem on our plants or flowers, we run around in our gardens trying to locate the culprits, which we know are too tiny for us to see with the naked eye. But we search and search, hoping that we can somehow see something to whack, wallop, wham or whomp. Is it a useless cause? Do we just give up, thinking that maybe a few of our veggies and flowers will survive the onslaught of arthropods?

There is a solution, one that is sound and based on scientific research. It's known as Integrated Pest Management, or IPM. The premise sounds simple enough: A pest management system that uses methods to prevent problems from occurring before they even start. Of course there is a bit more to it than this. But it is a method that can save you a lot of headaches.

The first step in the process is to take a good look at your plants. Check for signs of disease or evidence of pests. Next, try and identify the problem. If you're not sure what to look for, use reference books. Take a digital photograph of the infected or pest-ridden plant and compare it to what you find in your reference book. If you have problems finding the same conditions, your local extension office is the next best reference to use.

What you do next will depend on how bad the problem is. Is your plant or flower deathly ill? Does its appearance affect the aesthetics of the surrounding landscape? If some type of pest or disease control is necessary, try non-chemical methods first. It may sound yucky, but pinching a Japanese beetle or two is far less damaging than overuse of potentially hazardous chemical control methods. Using a spray of water can remove unwanted pests such as aphids or mites. Traps and barriers can be an effective method of controlling damage to plants. You can also try choosing another plant that is not as susceptible to disease and pests.

Biorational methods can be used. Biorational control takes into consideration two methods: living organisms that kill pests, and biochemicals that affect the pest but are often harmless to other living things. Natural living organisms in the garden that contribute to the control of pests include; the lady beetle, lacewings, soldier bugs, flower flies, and spiders. Parasitic wasps use pests as hosts for their offspring. A naturally occurring biochemical is the bacterium Bacillus thuringiensis (Bt). Bt contains a protein that is poisonous to certain insects, but won't harm other living organisms. Bt is used as a spray and when a pest feeds on leaves sprayed with Bt, it ingests the protein and is killed.

As a last resort, conventional chemicals may be used. This is an area of IPM that requires strict usage guidelines and requires more attention to detail than can be offered here. You'll find a link at the bottom of this page that will take you to the same source I used for my information here in this article. Carefully read the information on chemical control methods offered by Penn State's publication Pest Management Methods IPM Fact Sheet # 7.

Those pesky pests that befuddle gardeners may never be completely eradicated, but isn't this a part of what makes gardening so much more than just growing stuff?

All information for this article was gathered from Penn State's publication:

Pest Management Methods IPM Fact Sheet # 7