Biological Pest Control
Insect Identification
If you need an insect identified, we'll help. Read the following page but do note the submission guidelines. We have to be able to see it to identify it.Click here to get an insect identified.
Avoidance Techniques
One of the oldest of garden systems is repellent or deterrence planting. This involves planting one kind of plant to deter pests from around another plant. For example, if you plant petunias around a fruit tree, common wisdom says you won’t have aphids (or not as many) in your fruit tree because aphids don’t like petunias and won’t crawl over them to get to the tree.
This article on garden pest protection focuses on keeping a garden pest away from your plants by planting other plants with it. These suggestions can be used for both vegetable and flower gardens.
Companion planting is here. It will lead to an increasing number of pages on different aspects of companion planting as readers add to the lists.
Pest Control Products
Diatomaceous Earth is an excellent organic control method for a wide variety of pests. It is harmless to humans and pets and feels like talcum powder to us. However, to small insects, it is like walking on glass and they don’t survive the experience.
Rotenone has been used since the early 1800's for insect and pest control in the garden. We know know and understand much more about this control than we used to. The bottom line is that it is effective but it does require safety procedures (breathing mask) for the best organic control.
Controlling General Insect Problems
Natural ant control. For some reason, ants are seen as garden "bad guys" when they are simply nature's vacuum cleaners sucking up the bits of fungus and garden detritus ahead of the bad guys. They serve a very useful function but sometimes you want to eliminate them from your house or decks.
Earwigs love to hide under things and are voracious in its eating. But note that these ugly creatures also eat aphids in the garden so that makes them a partial good guy.
Japanese beetles have to be at the top of the generally voracious pest problem as they'll eat anything alive.(well, maybe not the dog or kids) :-) Here's how to control them organically.
Aphid control using organic gardening techniques.
Slug control is a perennial favorite question. Here are the effective environmentally sound techniques (and I don't recommend sharing your beer unless you have a lot of beer) :-)
Indoor/Outdoor Pests
Spider mites and how to control them (or pitch the plant). Here's how to knock them back in the house and garden.
Fungus gnats: these small black flies are easily controlled with organic methods.
Vegetable Pests
Cutworms There are few things so maddening as to go out into the garden and see some of your tender transplants lying on the ground like felled logs in a clear cut forest.
Cabbage looper: a small green worm that hatches out to a small white butterfly. Eating broccoli and other cole crops can be a bit of an adventure. Control methods are here.
Tomato hornworms: Growing tomatoes seems to always come with them. Here's how to control them using biological pest control methods.
Tree Pests
Organically control birch leaf miner using biological pest control techniques. Read this article to find out why Cygon2E kills more birch than the miner.Lawn Pest
Controlling chinch bugs. These are pests of lawns for the most part and they are fairly easily controlled in the odd year they become a pest.Organic Grub Control: I see many examples of companies trying to sell you white grub products. The reality is that most years, even bad grub years, you don't have to control the problem as natural predators are doing it for you. Here's how to tell if you have a problem and what to do about it.
Controlling Big Animals
Deer repellants: Goodness knows there are scads of recipes and products for This is one big pest and a serious one for many folks (this gardener included).
Squirrels are the bane of many gardeners. Here's the way to control them for sure.
Questions and Answers
Mole control can be a bit confusing - here's one explanation.
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You may find yours already answered so do check out the lists below
Got a Question about Garden Pests
If you have a question about garden pests, this is a good place to ask it.
Please understand that I get hundreds of questions every week from readers and I simply can't answer them all. I do my best and print quite a few in my free newsletter
Do give me as many details as possible.
Sorry - The Q&A Form is Temporarily Disabled
Click below to see questions from other visitors to this page...
deterring cats
is there any plants that will deter cats from coming into my garden and making a mess thank you
Doug says there are a ton of marketers who would have ...
tiny frogs on flower beds
How do I rid my beds of these tiny frogs?
Doug says you don't. Frogs are the good guys in the garden. They eat all manner of insects that eat your ...
Holes on Hostas, not from slugs I have holes in the leaves of my Hostas this year...I've baited for slugs, but aren't catching anything, so it must be some sort of other pest or fungus?...
killing squirrels with beet pulp pellets Hi! My pond/water garden has been infested with ground squirrels this year! they are climbing up on rocks, INTO the stream, everywhere imaginable and destroying ...
Big ugly spiders everywhere Every summer, usually by August, we have huge ugly spiders building webs all over the place around our house. I know people say spiders are good, but ...
Centipede/millipede scat in Michigan garden There are areas of the garden with tiny round balls of earth (like mini scat) which we have written off as worm castings. Upon close inspection, these ...
A pest that is consuming my lilies I'm needing to identify this bug and how to get rid of them. Every year the lilies are getting smaller. I believe they either turn into a slug type of ...
Birch trees I moved into a new house that has a birch tree which hangs over my driveway. In the fall I notice what looks like misty rain on my car windows, it won'...
Do ladybugs eat black aphids? I know ladybugs eat green aphids, but do they also eat black aphids? I have a huge infestation of black aphids and am anxious to control them without chemicals,...
Green Worms in Roses I have a bed of hardy roses, there are many(Mordens, Frontenac , Wpg. Parks) have many leaves that have turned light beige spolotches and the leaves wither ...
what is eating the irises?? I live in Northern RI and something is eating my purple iris flowers! I am not sure what kind of iris it is - someone gave it to me - short and not bearded ...
Bright Red Beetle This beetle is bright red and thin. He (or she) is mostly found on my daylillies. I had thought they were called Japaese beetles but have since found out ...
deer eating coneflower
There are deer in area, will they consume a new coneflower planting by my mailbox?
Doug says that deer will eat anything if they are hungry. See articles ...
Still have questions about biological pest control?
