Pests!
So I’ve just started a vegetable garden but I’ve been growing things for years. I’m not new to pests but I’m new to exactly how many pests a vegetable garden can attract almost immediately. Where did they all come from??
Here’s what I’ve found in just the first month of gardening:
- Fire Ants (these are more of a pest to me than my plants so far!)
- Large Black Tip Wilter
- Aphids
- Squash Beetle
- Various Caterpillars
- Leaf Miners
Since this is a vegetable garden, and we are planning on actually eating what it produces, I’m trying my best to stay away from chemicals to keep these bugs under control.
One of the best control methods, of course, is to have other creatures that eat the bad things! Yet another reason not to use chemicals that will kill off everything. A few of the good things I’ve seen in my garden include:
- spiders
- lizards!!!
- ladybugs
I’m thinking about getting some praying mantis eggs or ladybugs to release in my garden but need to look more into the ideal time to do that in Austin since it’s about to get really hot!
Sometimes predators aren’t enough. Here are some things I’ve tried or want to try:
- Neem Oil
- Fly Paper
- Orange Oil
- Liquid Molasses
- Lady Bug Release
- Praying Mantis Eggs
- Nematodes
I’ll do some separate posts about each method, what they worked on if anything, and how things are going.
