Organic Gardener


How to de-bug your garden

Did you know it is estimated that there are over 100,000 different species of insects that live in North America? If you don’t think you have bugs in your garden - guess again. In a typical backyard there are probably 1,000 little critters setting up house.

Remember, not all insects are bad. Less than three percent of all insects are classified as pests. Different plants attract different insects. You will not find a corn worm on a tomato plant, because it’s digestive system simply cannot handle it.

It is helpful to know the insects that live in your area. This will enable you to avoid insect infestation by planting plants that these insects do not eat. This is the safest, most environmentally friendly way to de-bug your garden.

Unfortunately, this will probably not be enough to keep all destructive insects out of your garden. For many gardeners, it is necessary to use insecticides. When using insecticides, you will have maximum results if you know what kind of insects you have. Always read the label on the insecticide and follow all directions. Make sure that it is labeled for use on your plants and insects. Whenever possible, use organic insecticides that are nontoxic. This will allow you to effectively rid your garden of harmful insects, while minimizing harm to the environment.

Here are some indicators that you need to de-bug your garden:

Do your leaves have holes in them?

This is an indication of a chewing insect. To control chewing insects you have to find out what kind of insect it is. It could be a caterpillar, grasshopper, or beetle, or one of many others. Look under the leaves in the morning, or just after dark. That is when they like to eat. Most people do not realize that they have bugs, because they hide during the heat of the day.

Is your plant discolored, drooping, wilting or generally lacks vigor?

Often times, sucking insects cause this type of damage. These critters do not eat outer surfaces of the plants, so some insecticides will not affect them. It is necessary to use a contact insecticide to eliminate sucking insects. Contact insecticides come in direct contact with the insect’s body and kill by burning, asphyxiation, or paralysis. The insecticide must actually “contact” the pests to kill them.



Is your tree full of holes, dripping sap, or do you have a pile of sawdust-like matter around the base of the tree?

Boring insects, (and we do not mean ones without a social life either) can do quite a bit of damage to trees before they emerge into their adult form. Borers may be directly attacked. When their tunnels are open, they may be impaled on a piece of wire. If they cannot be reached that way, they can be smothered by Bon-Neem Insecticidal Soap Concentrate or killed by Bonide Rotenone-Pyrethrins Concentrate, made with naturally occurring pyrethrin. These concentrates are available through Spray-N-Grow.

These are just a few ways you can de-bug your garden. The bottom line is…if you have healthy plants to begin with, you will probably be doing a lot less de-bugging in your garden!



Allison

Anna Hart


Do you know what vegetables to buy organic and what is not worth the trouble?

Organic vegetables are wonderful, and well worth their price, say some. Growing your own organic vegetables is best, of course. You feel safer knowing exactly what was used on your vegetables before they got to your table. But if you cannot grow your own organic vegetables, the argument goes, it is worth the trouble to find a store or farmers’ market where you can buy them. So let’s suppose you take that trouble. Let’s suppose you find a source of organic vegetables.

Do you know what vegetables to buy organic? Are all organic vegetables worth the higher price?

Organic vegetables that are certified organic under U.S. Dept. of Agriculture regulations must be produced without most synthetic pesticides, synthetic fertilizers, antibiotics, growth hormones, and feed made from animal parts.

Organic certification sounds like something most of us would want, but is it always necessary? Is it worth the extra money?

What Vegetables to Buy Organic

These 5 organic vegetables are usually worth the higher prices, since conventionally grown versions contain high amounts of pesticide residues.

1. Green beans: Conventionally grown green Beans can contain three organophosphates that are toxic to the nervous system: acephate, dimethoate and methamidophos. They can also contain endosulfan, an insecticide that disrupts endocrine secretion.

2. Potatoes: Non-organic potatoes are increasingly being exposed to pesticides, according to the Consumers Union. These potatoes may contain dieldrin and methamidophos. While this is bad enough for adults, children who eat potatoes are at risk for a high dose of aldicarb, a pesticide that pervades the inside of the potato.

3. Spinach: Spinach is ahead of all foods when it comes to DDT. Other pesticide residues are claimed to be falling as U.S. farmers are learning to use less quantities of synthetic insecticides. Nevertheless, spinach still can contain permethrin and dimethoate. Permethrin is thought to be potentially cancer-causing.

4. Tomatoes: Tomatoes grown by conventional means have been found high in chlorpyrifos. Chlorpyrifos, also known as Lorsban for farm use and Dursban for home use, is the most heavily used insecticide in the United States.

5. Winter Squash: When tested, two-thirds of winter squash samples exceeded the safe daily limit for a young child of Dieldrin, a chlorinated, carcinogenic insecticide. Heptachlor, another powerful carcinogen was also found. Winter squash in baby food contained DDT.

What Fruits to Buy Organic

Organic vegetables are only part of the picture when it comes to produce. Organic vegetables are often peeled and cooked before eating. Organic fruits are often eaten unpeeled, especially by young children. Young children also consume much greater amounts of fresh fruit per pound of body weight than do adults. The pesticides are concentrated more highly in children.

So while you’re thinking about what vegetables to buy organic, you should also consider these 7 fruits.

1. Apples: Apples can contain methyl parathion. Whether fresh apples, applesauce, or baby food, they can also contain chlorpyrifos.

2. Cantaloupe: Like tomatoes, cantaloupes grown by conventional means have been found high in chlorpyrifos.

3. Grapes: Imported grapes can contain dimethoate. Grapes grown in the U.S. contain methomyl and methyl parathion. Methomyl is a carbamate insecticide listed as an endocrine disruptor.

4. Peaches: Peaches are perhaps the worst of all fruits when grown conventionally. They contain high amounts of iprodione residue, classified by the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) as a probable human carcinogen. Peaches also contain methyl parathion, an organophosphate insecticide.

5. Pears: All conventionally grown pears, whether fresh or in baby food, can contain methyl parathion, as well as other insecticide residues.

6. Raspberries: Organic raspberries may be expensive, but you will be avoiding the fungicide captan, iprodione and carbaryl.

7. Strawberries: If you go for the beautiful red color of conventionally grown strawberries, you should know that it is caused by the fungicide captan, believed to be a possible human.

What Organic Vegetables Should You Buy?

Some organic vegetables are probably not worth the extra cost. When organic vegetables and fruits pose a health risk high enough to be listed by Consumers Union, however, you may want to take notice.



Lorrie

The urban gardener


Pest Control Approaches

Chemical horticulture fights off invasive pests with specific insecticides. They may be effective and fast-working at the beginning, but their long-term use may result in the raise of the insects resistant to the used insecticide. To kill those, more efforts will be needed, and the use of the different and stronger chemicals may be necessary. Moreover, killing enemies in the garden, any insecticide will inevitably eliminate predator insects (natural control bugs). And their lack will cause multiplying of the harmful pests. Consequently, a gardener will have to search for some other options to defeat the invasive populations.  

Organic horticulture, on the other hand, offers pests control through the studying and understanding their life cycles and peculiarities, as well as through the combined use of such methods as:

-           plants selection (pests and disease resistant plants are chosen for a garden);

-           companion plants growth (planting those crops that fight off pests and insects);

-           annual changing of the plants location to disrupt the reproduction cycles of the invasive species;

-           the use of row covers during the periods of pests migration;

-           employing insects traps to reduce the population of the pests;

-           increasing the number of predator insects and beneficial organisms.

In addition, organic gardeners usually allow some pests to live in the garden, carefully controlling their level though.

All of the mentioned methods have also additional benefits in the organic garden, as fertilization, soil protection, pollination, season extension and water conservation, despite of the fact that their influence and results usually take some time to become obvious. To sum it up it is possible to say that biological and organic pest control can be constituents of the integrated pest management (IPM). Nevertheless, the latter can also utilize chemical pesticides to eliminate harmful insects, although these do not belong to the biological or organic means.

Soil

Soil control and management are the important things in gardening. They offer the possibility to keep the garden healthy and strong, which is the key factor in the prevention of diseases and pests invasion onto the plants. One of the ways to success is providing the garden with humus and organic matter.



Jakob