Pests are most commonly observed problem in gardening. So, usually people tends to spray strong pesticides to get rid of them but ultimately we are going to consume pesticides sprayed fruits and vegetables.
When you apply pesticides all the chemicals of it get transfers on the particular good as non visible layer. They become a part of our food and accumulate into body and damages health.
Pesticides even kill beneficial bugs and insects like lady bug, butter flies and earth worms.
On The Basis Of Damages That Are Caused By Pests, They Are Categorized Into 3 Types
Leaves Damaging Pests:
Some pests like tomato horn worm, cabbage worm and beetle pest etc. damages and makes large holes by eating leaves.
These are easy to spot and effortless to remove from the plant leaves.
Sap Sucking Pests:
Sap is rich in carbohydrates which is very essential for plant growth.
Aphids, Spider mites and Squash Bugs suck the sap liquid that is flowing between leaves and other parts of the plant.
Root Infesting Pests:
Root aphids and moles directly attack the root system of the plant. This causes weakening of plants and leads them to death.
Once they attack the plant, these pests are difficult to stop. Prevention and pre-preparation is very important to eradicate them.
Natural Pest Controlling Methods:
Certified Seeds
Start Growing your plants by using certified seeds so that you can make sure that they are healthy and disease resistant.
Prevent Growing Exotic Varieties
Don’t grow exotic varieties because they may don’t have enough resistance to local climatic conditions.
Try Growing Different Varieties
Some vegetables like carrots comes in different varieties. So, instead of growing 1 variety try to grow 3-4 varieties of carrots. So that, if one variety is infected by pest, you can replace it with other variety in next plantation.
Sticky Tape
Paste sticky tape around perimeter of your container or raised bed because this will catch some types of pests.
Mesh
Cover your containers or raised beds with mesh. This prevents entry of pests.
When you install mesh make sure that there are no gaps or spaces because these gaps or space acts as entry for pests.
Removing Pests With Bare Hands
When you see the pests on your plants you can remove them by bare hands.
Trap
Traps are species specific and do not harm the useful bugs. They even don’t harm the plant.
You can bring it from gardening stores.
Soap Insecticides:
You can buy them from Gardening stores because it helps in removing pests without harming the insects.
Don’t use dish washing liquid or hand wash because it harms beneficial bugs.
Why Should We Use Organic Fertilizers?
- Generally Chemical Pesticides are used for large cultivation.
- Chemical fertilizers are not recommended for fruits and vegetables.
- Now a days, chemical fertilizers are even used for growing flowers.
- Chemical fertilizers have harsh, harmful and poisonous particles. So, when humans breathe or consume these particles it ruins the health of human.
- So, replace organic based pesticides with chemical pesticides.
Homemade Organic Pesticides:
Neem Leaves:
Boil 50 leaves of neem with 1 liter of water in a container.
Let it cool to the room temperature and now you can use this liquid as both foliar spray and pesticides.
Spray the liquid on leaves and stems to eradicate the pests.
Salt:
- Mix two table spoons of rock salt with 4 liters of warm water.
- Let it cool to normal temperature.
- Spray this liquid on your plants to eliminate mites.
Neem Oil:
Mix one table spoon of neem oil, one table spoon of liquid soap and 2 liters of warm water.
Stir it well and let it cool to room temperature. You can use this liquid as organic fertilizer.
Vinegar:
Add 250 ml of white vinegar in 1 liter of water to form a solution. You can use this solution as organic fertilizer for tomato and soft stem plants.
Cloves and Chilli Powder:
Grind 2 cloves into powder and mix it with 2 table spoon of chilli powder. Now mix cloves and chilli powder with two table spoon of liquid soap.
Dilute the paste with 500 ml of water. You can use this solution to remove aphids and white flies etc.
Soapy Water:
Mix 4 table spoons of liquid Soap with 2 liters of water and spray this solution directly at plants to keep pests away.
Mineral Oil:
Mix 25 ml of mineral oil with 1 liter of water and spray directly at plant to get rid of insect eggs.
All Purpose Organic Pesticide:
Take two cloves grind it into powder and mix it with 100 grams chilli powder. Now take one medium tomato and 1 inch ginger and make it into paste.
Mix chilli clove powder with tomato ginger paste and dilute it by adding 1 liter of water. Add 2 table spoons of liquid soap to this dilute solution and filter it.
Now, fill it into spray bottle and use this solution as organic pesticide.
