Tips and information from a not-so-successful gardener on ridding your garden of pests.
Raccoons, Skunks & Squirrels
Fences
My personal experiences with raccoons tells me that you should use chicken wire around the garden and string an electric fence around that. We're not trying to kill him, just let him know that this area is off limits to him. The shock should send him to other areas. I would definitely put more than one wire around because they will find a way to overcome one strand.
They are very intelligent animals and can be innovative in their pursuit. Any type of fencing without electricity will be easily climbed by a raccoon. Sweet corn is also one of their favorites, along with berries and veggies.
Electric fence is the only thing that works. Get a good charger, set a proper ground rod, and put two wires, one at around 3" and one at 9".
Grub Removal
They'll keep coming back as long as there are grubs there for them. Spray the ground with a grub killer before laying the sod. Once they're dead, the 'coons will be gone, too.
Radios
The Big Ones hit upon a sorta solution a couple of years ago. Put a radio in the middle of the garden or at the edge with speakers facing the garden or as close as you can get it. Battery operated is OK but usually doesn't last long. Tune that radio to talk radio and make sure it is loud enough for the raccoons to hear (and hopefully not the neighbors). Don't know if it is the talk show hosts or the noise, but the raccoons hate it.
Skunks
My neighbors and I put up plastic owls to discourage skunks.
Squirrels
In order to stop them from climbing trees, trim the lower limbs, and wrap barriers around each individual trunk.
You can also cover shrubs, fruits and certain veggies with wire netting to protect them. Newly planted bulbs will also benefit from being covered by wire netting. It will keep the squirrels from digging them up. If you're desperate, you can also resort to squirrel traps and bait.
A remedy that I have not tried is peppermint oil. Apparently squirrels are immediately repelled by it. Another organic ingredient is capsicum, which is the spicy part of hot peppers.
Last Resort Recommendations
Mothballs.....varmits hate the smell of mothballs or mothcrystals. Put them in two liter coke bottles with a few holes poked in the sides and hope your critters have sensitive noses. Place the bottles about every 10-20 feet around your sweetcorn.
I have yet to find an effective raccoon repellant or skunk repellant. They laugh at mothballs.
If that doesn't work, try a dog. A big, mean one. Or a BB gun.
Insects
Slugs
Do you have slugs in your garden? Let's hope not, but if you do I can hopefully help you in ridding yourself of these slimy pests. These pests can take over your garden and defoliate your flowers in a very short period of time.
Obviously there is the good old slug pellet, not 100% effective but seems to do the trick reasonably well. It is also said that like most of us chaps they are rather partial to a beer, so sink a container into the ground, fill it no more than half with beer and it will attract them. They should fall in and drown, or if not just get very drunk and wake up the next morning with one heck of a hang over!
Other methods include putting broken eggshells, sand, or sharp grit around the base of your plants as they don’t like the feel of it.
Are you by any chance raising chickens? Let a few loose around the garden beds before planting your crops and let them clean up the slugs and the slug eggs. Chickens actually love these slimy pests.
I have also used a mixture of half vineger and half water sprayed over my garden. Salt will do the same and make these slimy pests just disappear in a few seconds.
Ants
Start by drowning the ants with boiling water. Approximately three gallons of boiling water to each mound should do the trick. Follow with a natural repellent of citrus peelings and water. Blend in a blender and pour it over the anthill.
You can either saturate cotton balls with peppermint oil or mix it up in a spray bottle with water and apply where needed.
Another natural remedy is to mix equal parts of sugar and borax. Place the sugar/borax mixture strategically around the yard in small containers (jar lids work just fine). The ants are attracted to the sugar and carry it back to the mound and within a week or two the borax will kill the mound.
One other natural remedy is to use instant grits or cream of wheat. Sprinkle the grits over the mound. The ants will eat the grits and the grits will expand and blow up inside them. This method has been known to remove an ant hill within a day or two.
Aphids, mealybugs, mites, scales, and thrips
Make a soap spray. Mix one tablespoon dishwashing soap, such as Ivory Liquid or Shaklee’s Basic H, in one gallon of water. Test spray a few leaves of the affected plant; if no damage results, spray the whole plant.
Make an ammonia spray by mixing one part household ammonia with seven parts water.
Make an oil spray by stirring one tablespoon of liquid dishwashing soap into one cup of vegetable oil (peanut, safflower, corn, soybean, or sunflower). Mix 1 to 2 teaspoons of the soap and oil blend with one cup water, and apply to affected plants.
Mites
Quite a few swear that Sunlight Dishwashing Liquid is the one remedy that works one hundred percent of the time on mites. I would suggest using 1 tablespoon of the dishwashing liquid with one gallon of water.
I will often go to my medicine cabinet and get out the rubbing alcohol to treat plants infested by spider mites, aphids, slugs and whiteflies. After a few applications of rubbing alcohol to the affected areas using cotton balls, you will have successfully eliminated these pests.
Rubbing alcohol is a must-have for the garden.
So you think that buttermilk is just a method for getting moss to grow? Well, think again.
Here's what you'll need:
1/2 cup of buttermilk 4 cups of wheat flour 5 gallons of water. Mix. Then strain this mixture through cheesecloth. Spray it onto the diseased plants. It will kill all of the mites and their eggs.
Attracting Insects' Natural Enemies
Natural enemies, or "good bugs", can provide a safe, environmentally friendly means of suppressing pests. Most insects that live in or near our gardens are not harmful; in fact, many are beneficial! Insects' natural enemies can be predators or parasitoids. Predators such as lady beetles and lacewings are mainly free living species that consume many prey during their lifetime. Another important group of predators are the spiders; scientists are just beginning to recognize the importance of spiders as natural enemies and in some countries they are being brought in to help control insect pests.
Parasitoids, which include many wasps and flies, are more specialized than predators; the immature stage actually develops within the body of a single insect, ultimately killing it. The adults are free living and often visit flowers for nectar and pollen.
Select plants for your garden that are known to lure insects' natural enemies to help you attract and conserve these garden helpers. Two large groups, or families of plants, are excellent "lures" - the parsley family (Umbelliferae), such as queen’s anne’s lace, and the sunflower or daisy family (Compositae).
A number of culinary herbs in this plant family including parsley, dill, caraway, cilantro or coriander, and fennel. Some of these herbs are very attractive to syrphid and tachinid flies, assassin bugs, lacewings and parasitic wasps. One caution - these plants will spread quickly if left to go to seed, so remove flower heads after they stop producing nectar, but before seeds mature. Also, some are biennials, so you won't see flowers appear for a year.
The Compositae family is characterized by flower heads that are actually made up of many small flowers growing together. Many flowers are composed of rays around a disk-like center. Many well-known ornamental flowers including marigolds, dahlias, daisies, asters, cosmos, calendula, coreopsis, tansy, yarrow, zinnia, and sunflowers are in this family. Ladybugs, lacewings, parasitic wasps and some predaceous wasps are attracted to plants in this family. Soldier beetles, flower beetles, and some lady beetles will feed on pollen in addition to feeding on insects. Dandelions offer early spring pollen to some of these insect predators.
Legumes such as clovers and vetch also attract beneficials. They add nitrogen to the soil, provide good shelter and moisture for insects, and may even serve as a source of alternative prey for natural enemies. Beneficial insects such as ground beetles, rove beetles and robber fly larvae are often found in the soil.
Cover crops offer protection to natural enemies when our annual garden plants are not actively growing. Often, beneficial insects move over from the cover crops as these crops begin to die back, feeding on "bad" insects that are in turn consuming the desirable garden plants. Buckwheat is a good one because it not only provides shelter, but has flowers which attract flies, ladybugs and pollinating bees. One caution, however, is that it does self-seed readily! A small permanent planting of buckwheat near the garden allows immature natural enemies to complete development without seeding up your garden.
Predator Bugs
To attract predacious insects--the kind that eat other insects--dot your garden with sweet alyssum, asters, daisies, marigolds, sunflowers, yarrow, and members of the parsley family, such as parsley, fennel, and dill. These flowers offer the nectars and pollens that predacious bugs need to supplement their insect diet.
Deer
Cut up a bar of Irish Spring Soap. Cut the end of an old pair of panty hose. Put the piece of soap in the panty hose and tie into the trees and bushes where the deer have done damage. Before you know it, the deer will be gone. They can't stand the smell of Irish Spring.
Leave a few dozen eggs unrefridgerated until they are good and ripe, and then breaks them around the perimeter of the garden.
The hair thing works to some degree. You can get a supply at any barber. Put it in a mesh bag -- panty hose will do.
You don't have to erect much of a fence to protect vegetables. I've found that a four-foot chicken wire fence, strong along some stakes, will discourage them unless they are very hungry. You can even lay it lightly over the tougher vegetables. They really don't like to catch their horns or skin their lips.
Weeds
Some say a weed is simply "a plant out of place" but a better definition is a plant thrusting itself where it has no business and hindering the growth of other plants.
Non-herbicide solutions
In the case of perennials, the removal of top growth forces the roots to give up nutrients to develop new stems and leaves. There is a limit to how many times roots can initiate new foliage in a single season.
Once you change your way of thinking and learn to garden organically you can have a terrific looking yard without chemicals. You need to start by getting your soil healthy- that's really the basis of the whole thing.
It seems that no matter how thorough I am, I am still faced with grass and weeds in my vegetable garden come summer. I don’t want to spend my whole summer weeding.
While all gardeners will have to do some weeding, there are steps you can take to minimize the task. Cover the entire garden with black plastic or large tarps for a few weeks in early spring. This helps kill early sprouting weed seeds. When you remove the plastic, till the soil, wait a week or so for more seeds to sprout, then till again.
Newspaper
Newspaper is effective as a barrier keeping incoming weed seeds away from the soil and, at the same time, keeping light away from the weed seeds already present. The soil is first weeded, cleaned, raked smooth, and watered. Three to four days later, the soil is again hand weeded to clean up any weeds that might have sprouted as a result of the disturbance to the soil and watering. Then lay down about six layers of newspaper overlapping so there are no thin spots. Cover with a 2"-3" layer of well composted organic material as a mulch and give a light soaking.
The compost mulch looks better, and holds the newspaper in place. It provides a measure of protection. At one time, newspaper ink was petroleum based and would have injured the soil environment, but the newer inks are based on vegetable oils and are considered okay. However, don’t use newspaper with colored inks. Top growth generates plant nutrients which, for the most part, are stored in the roots. Chopping off top growth of weeds is another way to achieve control _if_ you chop at the right time. In the case of annuals, remove the top growth just before it sets seed. Plant energy at that time is being channeled into flower and seed embryo production with little left over to replace top growth.
Mulch the pathways heavily, so at least you won't have to weed them. One easy, inexpensive mulch is a thick layer of newspapers laid flat in the row, followed by a layer of mulch. You could also use black plastic, landscape fabric, wood chips or sawdust, or a very thick layer of grass clippings or hay.
Plant seed in rows (rather than scattering them), so you can easily hoe between the rows. As soon as seedlings are up, begin mulching around them. For large, heat-loving plants like tomatoes, peppers, and eggplant, lay a piece of black landscape fabric or plastic over the row, cut holes in it, and plant your seedlings through the holes.
Finally, to keep the surrounding lawn from encroaching, dig a six to eight inch trench around the entire garden. All these things take a little time in spring, but they are well worth the effort and will save you a lot of time later on in the season. Also, each year you will decrease the weediness of the garden.
Vinegar
Vinegar has become the new organic solution for killing off weeds. Some people say that they are able to kill off weeds with only household vinegar spray. Others say that you need to buy a higher concentration of vinegar in order for it to be effective. I would check one of the bottled organic vinegar solutions at your garden center to see what concentration of vinegar they use.
It wouldn't hurt to add lemon juice to your homemade weed-killing formula either. Word has it that the combo of vinegar and lemon juice is a real killer.
Gophers and Moles
Moles
You may never see them. They lurk around underground and seldom poke their little noses out to meet you face to face. But your lawn and garden can certainly show all the signs of their presence. Mounds of soil scattered over the lawn. Disrupted root systems in the garden. Yep, they are out there—moles and gophers—and they can wreak havoc on your lawn and garden.
Ways to repel moles and gophers are also numerous. Try destroying their food source by applying milky spore disease to the soil to kill grubs and other insects they like to eat.
You can plant the mole plant or castor bean plant throughout your yard to repel moles. Moles are said to also be repelled by Mexican Marigold, daffodils, and crown imperials (a spring-flowering bulb).
Other people claim that a few scoops of used kitty litter will deter the pests. Apparently, moles and gophers get a wind of the used kitty litter and think some other animal has invaded their territory and will pack up and leave.
Another odoriferous cure is to soak some cloth in ammonia, then drop it into a gopher hole. This will also send the animals away.
For both moles and gophers, you can also try repelling them with sound vibrations. Both critters dislike the annoyance of sound vibrations, and can deter them with a few poles with empty plastic bottles tied to the top so that the bottles can knock around in the wind.
For gophers, you can also try a half inch wire mesh barrier around your garden. It should go at least two feet underground and be at least two feet above ground as well.
Chances are that no one solution will provide permanent pest control. You will have to keep watch, experiment a little, and probably re-do after a time. Talk with your local agricultural extension service to find out which methods work best in your area.
Several bulb plants are said to repel moles. One is the well-known daffodil. Two of the others are also classic spring bloomers, although not quite as widely known as the daffodil: Siberian squill and crown imperial.
The Allium genus of bulbs comprises not only garlic, onions, leeks, chives and shallots, but also ornamental flowering onions. The latter are sometimes simply referred to as “Alliums.” This unusual flowering plant ranges in size from about 6"-5' in height. While garlic is also reputed to be a mole repellent, Allium is a better choice if you’re seeking a living mole repellent strong not only in scent, but also in aesthetic qualities.
The Mexican marigold is a malodorous plant widely used in companion planting for its ability to repel pests. Companion planting is an example of an organic pest control method. And adventurous landscapers seeking mole control the organic way don't have to settle for planting the commonplace marigold. A couple of "living mole repellents" have a decidedly exotic flair: namely, mole plant and castor bean.
That's right: one of these plants has gained such notoriety as a living mole repellent that it is often referred to simply as “mole plant.” Also called “caper spurge”, this plant is an annual but re-seeds itself readily. Mole plant has a striking architecture and is often grown as an ornamental, standing erect and bearing lance-shaped leaves. Its leaves are marked with an exquisite white vein running right down the middle. If you make a cut into a mole plant’s stem, a milky sap will ooze out, as when you break the stalk of a milkweed plant. It is apparently the smell of this poisonous, caustic sap that repels the moles.
The final living mole-repellant I’d like to describe is castor bean, also known as castor-oil plant. This one’s a bit of a no-brainer, since, as I have already mentioned, commercial mole repellent formulas are based on castor oil. Used in the old days as a laxative, there are still many folks out there who can attest to the repellent qualities of castor oil. And it would seem that moles don’t like it any better than humans do! A word of caution: castor bean, like mole plant, is poisonous – neither should be grown around small children.
Plant jalapeno peppers within four inches of where these rodents are invading. They will run for cover after taking a test of these hot veggies.
Rabbits
I don't mind sharing but we live in the country. The garden is surrounded by lush greenery on all sides. These rabbits seemed vindictive. What I didn't realize was the country setting was a large part of the problem. If you haven't tried them yet, here are a few non toxic methods to deter those furry little pests.
Get rid of cover and keep them out with a fence
They can't eat what they can't get at. One inch mesh chicken wire serves as a good fence. Buy it three feet high, keeping two feet above ground and one foot beneath to deter burrowing. Bending the top forward slightly might help keep out any persistent pests.
Plant marigolds amid rabbit delicacies such as lettuce and carrots, in the vegetable garden. The marigolds’ strong odor repels rabbits.
Sprinkle ground pepper around plants to repel rabbits--be sure and renew after every rain.