Organic Insect Control Is a Healthier Way of Growing Your Garden

Insects are a big challenge to any gardener, especially for those who prefer to grow their produce organically, and are wary about using chemicals to control insects and bugs. In the first place, knowledge about the insects and bugs that are found in garden can come in handy, when you are looking to eradicate or control them through organic insect control. You can also consider using biological control as a means that is quite effective in dealing with garden pests.

Among the various insects for which control is sought by most gardeners are:

• Beetles
• Aphids
• Cut Worms
• Caterpillars

Beetles attack plants when they are in the larval stage and are in the form of white grubs. Their multiplying population results in the roots of plants getting eaten, while leaves will show signs over time, of having boreholes. Manual removal of these grubs is the best way of removing this pest infestation, but an organic solution that works just as well is an enzyme cleaner that has peppermint mixed with it. Enzyme cleaners can be obtained from many suppliers, but can also be made at home with some brown sugar and orange and lemon peels. The items have to be mixed with water and the container shaken vigorously till the brown sugar dissolves. The gas that forms has to be allowed to escape and the resulting enzyme cleaner allowed to ferment for three months before it is used. Birds can be attracted to gardens with feeders and other berry bushes. They are natural enemies of the beetles and will eat a number of insects.

Aphids are soft bodied insects that are found in every garden. They can suck up the sap in a plant and cause it to wither. They also cause the spread of viral diseases, which lead to plants getting discolored, distorted or having their leaves fall off. You can spray them with peppermint soap solution, soap insecticide, or an enzyme cleaner to cause them to drop off and die. Lady bugs, parasitic wasps, hover flies and green lacewings are natural predators that feed on aphids.

The larvae of cut worms eat up all forms of live plant tissue. Handpicking them is essential after which they must be destroyed. These worms and moths are most active at night and this is the time when you can use diluted enzyme cleaner to kill them. Talcum powder can also kill them and act as a barrier to a further population of the worms. Chickens, nematodes and Braconid wasps will prey on the cut worms in your garden.

Butterflies and moths have their larvae in the form of caterpillars. These caterpillars will eat the leaves of any flowering plant or one that grows vegetables. The laborious method to eradicate them is to closely examine the underside of leaves and manually pick them off. Again a combination of peppermint and enzyme cleaner can act as insect control, while caterpillars can also be killed by using wormwood spray or spray containing garlic and red pepper. Chickens and birds do eat caterpillars, and a single chicken can remove as many as 500 caterpillars in a day.

There are a lot of other common materials available in most homes that can be used for organic insect control. A organic pesticide spray made from garlic soaked in mineral oil and fish emulsion makes for a very effective spray for aphids and flies. The solution needs to be diluted. Onion and mint can make effective bug repellents. Milk mixed with cucumber and zucchini can act as a fungicide and destroy any mildew formed on plants. Salt can be used to create a barrier for ants and other crawling insects. Mineral oil and vegetable oils cause soft bodied insects to suffocate.

Apply organic insect control methods for only those plants that are affected, as it may then affect even the insects that are beneficial to plants. These homemade remedies can be quite cheap, but you can look for organic pesticide products if you do not have the time to make them.