There are a plethora of organic garden pest control practices to choose from to protect your bountiful edibles from harm. Pesticides are effective against critters overtaking your garden, but at what cost to your pets, health and environment are these chemical treatments? Why subject yourself as well as other living beings to these chemicals when practicing organic pest control in your garden can be just as effective? Read on for some handy tips to eradicate the most troublesome little beasties.

Organic Garden Pest Control Through Beneficial Insects

Sometimes, it takes one insect to get rid of a variety of harmful insects that are destroying your garden. Ladybugs, lacewings, arachnoids, ichneumon wasps and hover flies all love to eat aphids, mites, leaf eating caterpillars and a variety of other garden eating pests which makes them perfect for organic garden pest control.

You can order these beneficial insects through various home and garden catalogs or you can plan ahead and plant some flowers that attract these bugs to your garden. Yarrow, asters, goldenrod, black-eyed susans, tansy and Queen Anne s lace are all flowers which attract these beneficial bugs and should be planted in advance of your garden so they have time to flower and work effectively as organic garden pest control.

Organic Garden Pest Control Through Cheap, Homemade Remedies

Sometimes, the ingredients in your kitchen cabinets yield some great organic garden pest control solutions. For mealy bugs, mites, aphids and other soft bodied pests; mix a few drops of liquid soap and a tablespoon of canola oil with about a quart of water in a spray container. Spray both the topside and underside of the leaves on your affected plants to control these pests, as the oil will asphyxiate them.

Cayenne pepper or other noxious hot sauces are effective deterrents against a variety of pests and even garden eating deer. In a spray container, mix a quart of water with some liquid soap and a few tablespoons of hot pepper sauce or powdered cayenne. Allow to sit overnight before mixing up and spraying on the effected plants.

For fungal diseases, mix a quart of water and two tablespoons of baking soda together and use a sprayer to treat your affected plants as an organic garden pest control solution. You may have to apply this treatment every few days to eradicate the fungus or if it rains and washes the treatment away. For mildew that looks like powder on your plants, mix equal parts of water and milk together to spray on them. It will take several applications every few days to get rid of the mildew and save the plant.

There are countless other organic garden pest control solutions you can try and each one will usually target a specific pest problem. Keep in mind too that your organic garden pest control solution will not always work on a broad spectrum of insects so you will have to combine treatment plans in order to cover all bases.