Recently a young man came to our door wanting to sell us some kind of insect control for our yard and home. He started off by saying that many of our neighbors use their company. He did not realize that I do not subscribe to the keeping up with the neighbors mentality. I let him know that I was not interested, that we did not want to poison our environment. He insisted that all of their products were plant based. My response was "Well, your product kills things, doesn't it?" He stammered and said he respected my opinion but insisted on leaving me his card.
I am as concerned as the next person about mosquito and tick borne diseases, and I want to enjoy my yard and garden in the summertime. Finding a balance between poisoning the soil and air around me and keeping pests under control has been a life long learning process. Some of my methods have been more successful than others. One year I actually took a shop vac into my vegetable garden in a vain attempt to suck up all of the squash bugs that were eating my lovely acorn and zucchini plants. I removed a lot of bugs but my plants still succumbed to their invasion.
There are so many ways to control pests naturally that we really do not need to resort to the many poisonous products that are so aggressively marketed to gardeners and homeowners. Many plants have pest repelling properties, so incorporating them into your garden can go a long way toward an abundant harvest.
Catnip prevents aphids, beetles,caterpillars and shield bugs.
Dill prevents aphids, caterpillars, shield bugs and spider mites.
Mint prevents aphids, beetles, caterpillars, shield bugs and whiteflies.
Nasturtium prevents aphids, beetles, caterpillars and shield bugs.
In addition to these, other great plants to grow for pest control include
Basil
Borage
Chives
Marigold
Oregano
Parsley
Rosemary
Rue
Summer savory
Thyme
Attracting frogs and toads into your garden is a pesticide-free and natural way of greatly lowering your pest population.
Encouraging natural predators is a wonderful and interesting method of controlling pests. Frogs and toads are seasoned predators with nearly insatiable appetites, and they dine exclusively on insects, so having a few on hand can help reduce pests in your garden. Toads and frogs in your yard are an indicator of a healthy ecosystem. You can encourage these critters by creating giving them places to hide. Create messy areas full of leaves, log piles and vegetation. Alternatively, placing some plant pots on their sides and partially burying them will provide much-needed shelter for any frogs visiting your garden. Native plants offer habitats to natural insect populations, which are a toad's main food source. Plants also provide toads with cover to hide from predators. A bare lawn won't help attract toads, but natural garden beds filled with native plants will.
Ladybugs and their larvae feed on aphids and other soft-bodied pests.
Lacewings and their larvae devour lots of bad bugs, including aphids, caterpillars, leafhoppers, scales, thrips, whiteflies and even insect eggs.
Hoverflies resemble small bees (and they actually help with pollination!). Their green, slug-like larvae feed on aphids.
Parasitic wasps are often almost too small to see. They prey on aphids and caterpillars.
Predatory true bugs, which include spined soldier bugs, assassin bugs, pirate bugs and others, feed on various caterpillars and beetles.
Spiders may not be what you love to see in your garden, but they’re valuable allies, eating all kinds of pests. Plus, those that typically inhabit gardens aren’t poisonous.
Tachinid flies, which basically look like houseflies, are natural enemies of caterpillars, beetles and shield bugs.
Mosquitoes - we all hate them
Attacking the problem at the source is vital: mosquito-larvae control. Do not allow any standing water in your yard, as mosquitos lay their eggs in stagnant water. Products containing Bti can be used in bird baths to control mosquitoes. Bti is a biological or a naturally occurring bacterium found in soils. (Bti is short for Bacillus thuringiensis subspecies israelensis.) It contains spores that produce toxins that specifically target and only affect the larvae of the mosquito, blackfly and fungus gnat. Bti has no toxicity to people and is approved for use for pest control in organic farming operations.
Bats are a wonderful way to control mosquitoes in the yard. Just one little brown bat can easily catch 1,000 mosquito-sized insects in an hour, and a nursing mother eats approximately 4,500 insects every night. Putting a bat house on the side of your house will encourage them to take up residence and patrol your yard.
Other excellent methods for mosquito control
Plant oils that can be applied to the skin as natural repellents; for example, those that come from citronella, castor bean plants, or catnip plants.
Certain bath oils have repellent qualities.
Devices such as the Mosquito Magnet, a device that emits a gas that mimics natural human breath, which lures mosquitoes into its death chamber.
Avoid dark clothing as this can attract mosquitoes.
Staying organic in your landscape maintenance so as to avoid killing mosquito predators.
An electric fan blowing on you and your guests works wonders! Mosquitoes get literally blown away.
Tick control
Cedar oil blocks a tick’s scent receptors, disrupts its body systems, and dries the bug up upon contact, disintegrating ticks in the nymphal stage. Ready to test it out? Try making a small dose of natural tick repellent in a spray bottle. Simply mix four ounces of distilled or boiled water, witch hazel, and 30 to 50 drops of cedar oil (along with other oils like lavender or vanilla for a sweet-smelling scent).
Guinea fowl
Originally from Africa, the colorful, odd-looking Guinea fowl, about the size of chickens only with more oval shaped bodies, love to eat ticks as well as other insects, small snakes, and rodents, such as deer mice, a primary carrier of the deer tick that carries Lyme Disease. One study has shown that guinea fowl reduced the numbers of adult deer ticks on lawns adjacent to dense foliage. The study also concluded that since adult deer ticks are likely to carry the Lyme disease bacterium, the presence of free-ranging guinea fowl may help reduce the probability of contracting Lyme Disease from adult ticks on lawns and lawn edges. While guinea fowl alone should not be relied on for total tick control, they are less expensive than having a lawn repeatedly treated for ticks. The birds require little maintenance, but they are noisy and territorial—your neighbors may not be fans.
I encourage you all to embrace more natural methods designed to allow you to live in harmony with even the bugs that bug you.
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