Raccoons may look cute, but they are dangerous and trouble in the garden.

There are many pests that hang out in the vegetable garden. Some sneak in at night, some fly in by air, some creep in under the soil and others find their way in riding piggyback on other wildlife. Pests will vary depending on where you live. Some are widespread and bother vegetable gardens in many climates.

There is nothing sweeter than a home-grown tomato. That’s why so many people find space to grow at least one tomato plant – even on a patio or balcony when there is no garden space. In warm, sunny summers tomatoes grow easily in all parts of the country. There are cultivars to fit into just about any space. You can even grow sun-dried tomatoes on the vine. But beware the ubiquitous tomato worm. It is green so it is hard to see and eats its way into growing very large (about three very fat inches long). Because these are the larval form of the hawk moth – a delightful creature often seen at sunset that looks like a tiny hummingbird – there are few places you can grow your tomatoes that will be inaccessible to the egg-laying adults. Hand pick the tomato worm or hornworm when you see it. These caterpillars are voracious and can reek a lot of destruction fast. On the positive side, the adults are important because they are prime pollinators of many plants — some can benefit from them more than from bees.

Even when summer ends, pests can be active in the vegetable garden. Insects can have a last rush at dining on your plants and even the animals that go dormant in the winter – like ground squirrels or gophers – are likely to want to party in your garden before taking a winter snooze. Racoons are perfectly happy to rummage through your landscape at any time of the year. In the eastern half of the country they can carry rabies, and even in the western half of the country in rural areas that had no raccoons they are becoming more and more common. I suspect it’s because of the increase in the human population. The recession may have slowed the influx of people in these areas, but the raccoons don’t seem much worried about the economy. The most useful deterrent I have found for these plucky critters (that can destroy ponds, vegetable gardens and trash can areas) are electrified fences for cattle or sheep. There is even a raccoon electric fence made specially for them.

Sometimes vegetables grow unmolested for the first few years until the wildlife discovers you’ve planted them a paradise. Those ridiculous old cartoons of people playing tug-of-war with a gopher on the other end of a vegetable plant lose their absurdity when you find yourself on the opposite end of your favorite plant as something greedy beneath the soil tries to wrest it from your grip. There are a hundred and one home remedies to use against gophers from chewing gum to kitty litter to tar-dipped corn cobs. Try them first if you want. Then try any of the noise vibrators, scent deterrents, smoking bombs, and, if necessary, poison baits. (Please use the last with caution so pets and other wildlife are not endangered.) If you don’t have success, go for the long-lasting solution of building physical barriers. Half-inch hardware cloth lining the vegetable garden underneath and up the sides, is usually a surefire, long term way to keep plants safe from gopher pests. Building a raised vegetable garden can help, too, especially if the bottom is lined with wire.

Physical barriers will keep out most of the other destructive rodents like mice, rats and rabbits. Mice and rats can be tricky, though, since they’ll find the smallest of spaces to sneak through. You’ll have to keep a careful watch on all gaps and seams. Rats and mice may find entryways before you do. I’m currently testing out the raccoon electrical wire to see if it will discourage the rats from entering the vegetable garden.

To keep out the rabbits, plan on making wire fences at least two feet high. And since rodents like mice and rats have skulls that can compress, these pests can fit into holes that look way to small for them to enter. You are safest using half inch hardware cloth rather than the chicken wire to keep them out.

For those of you who have better luck with exposed vegetable plants, sometimes cages wrapped with one-inch chicken wire are enough to protect sufficient crops for the table. When it comes to late season melons or winter squashes, try using plastic net bags (like the ones turkeys come in during the holidays, or sometimes onions and potatoes are sold in bulk with these nets). For some reason the gnawing pests seem to be put off their game by the bags, while air and sunshine are free to pass freely. Bag up young fruits and vegetables letting them grow to fill up the interior; the netting expands along with the growth. Maybe this trick will help you preserve more of your produce from those ravenous wild critters out there.

Insect pests are often controlled by hosing with water. If that doesn’t work, try an insecticidal soap or Neem®. If you still need to resort to poisons, make sure you read and follow the directions carefully for the most successful and safest applications. Personally, I prefer keeping poisonous insecticides out of edible gardens altogether if I can.

Speaking of insects, if you have celery plants, you might want to let some of them set seed. I find they often get aphids that then become magnets for ladybugs. Celery is best planted from seed and will be ready to crop in the late winter in warm climates. In the spring and early summer it will put out its flat-topped clusters of tiny yellow flowers that are likely to become loaded with ladybug families: eggs, pupae, nymphs and adults just in time to defend your garden from invading six-legged pests. All the members of the ladybug family (eggs excepted, of course) are voracious devourers of aphids all over the garden. You can even purchase live ladybugs. They will fly away over time, but only after their food supply of insect pests runs out.

Now if I could only figure out what plant I could cultivate that would intimidate the ground squirrel population. Maybe the electrified raccoon netting will work with them, too. (It shocks the intruders, but will not kill them.) I’ll let you know if this net fencing is successful as it is tested out in my garden during the coming year.

Originally posted 2011-12-11 08:26:36. Republished by Blog Post Promoter

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Scale settles in large communities and hardly looks alive.

Scale is a little insect that damages warm climate plants and house plants. It’s a strange little pest since the adult form settles into immobility on stems and leaves and looks like anything but an insect. The waxy blobs that cover the adult scale harbor nasty little sucking critters that drink out the life fluids from the plant. Immature scale is mobile and very tiny. Males are also small and have wings, but they do not feed or harm plants. The adult females, like aphids, sometimes excrete a sweet, sticky honey-like liquid that can drip onto surfaces below. The liquid can also attract ants.

Soft scale and armored scale are common in warm environments. They are killed off by frosts of varying degrees, but then so are many of their host plants. The mealybug is a type of scale, too. There are hundreds of types of scale insects. They come in a wide variety of shapes, textures, favorite host plants and climate tolerances.

Scale can be a serious pest to edible crops like citrus and debilitating to houseplants. There are some varieties that are used commercially to make shellac finishes and cochineal dye is a red pigment that has been harvested from some species of scale insects. But the scale insect is far better known for its destructive effects on plants.

Scale is difficult to control and natural preditors are the most effective. For individual houseplants and in the home garden, horticultural oils can be effective by literally smothering the insect. Some insecticides can kill the mobile young and the males on contact, but rarely penetrate the adult female waxy shell.

Originally posted 2011-09-05 05:31:44. Republished by Blog Post Promoter

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The tiny aphid (Sketch by Jane Gates)

Aphids are little delicate bugs that suck juices from plants. One won’t cause any harm, but aphids multiply at and awesome rate and can coat leaves, buds and even stems in record time. They come in reds, yellows, greens, whites, blacks and browns. Colorful though they might be, they are also messy and destructive.

Some aphids will produce winged members when colonies get too big or the host plant becomes to weak and these flyers wing away to establish new colonies. Because aphids pests exude a sticky sweet liquid, ants love them and are happy to transport members to ever widening locations in order to extend the colonies. Ants actually will ‘farm’ these insects, moving them from one plant to another. More aphids feast on your plants. More sweet good stuff for the ants. More ants everywhere. More ailing plants. Yuck.

Aphids have weak little legs and if knocked off a plant with a stream of water, they are unable to climb back up again. Score a point for the gardener this time. Unfortunately, by the time an infestation is noted, there are often too many aphids to wash off. If you find an infestation is getting too widespread to wash off with water alone, try using one of the insecticidal soaps. Usually blasting with water and using the soap is enough to keep these insects pests under control.

The best way to keep aphids from getting ahead of you in the garden is to keep inspecting your plants. Keep a watch on tender, new, green shoots and the hidden undersides of leaves. New growth is most susceptible. Another natural control is to allow ladybugs, lacewings and other predators to feast on your aphids. Usually, so long as the aphid populations don’t grow too widespread, Mother Nature sends some of these voracious little aphid-munchers along to balance out the population. Keeping these friendly predators safe to do their jobs in the garden is one good reason to avoid heavy poisons in the garden whenever possible.

In short, vigilance, a squirt of water, horticultural insecticidal soap, and some help from pest-eating insects is usually enough to keep aphid pests from getting out of control in your garden.

Originally posted 2011-03-02 05:46:35. Republished by Blog Post Promoter

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Garlic is one of the few plants the rodents don't like.

Living in the open chaparral has its high and low points. There is something timeless yet awe-inspiring to see how life adapts to this rather extreme environment. It’s a dry, stoic life in the scrub community, but there are also points of intricate delicacy and amazing moments of blazing beauty.

In all parts of the world it is important for human development to work in tandem with nature. Whenever we get too arrogant with our demands, nature seems to set us back into humility with earthquakes, floods, storms, disease or some other form of rebalancing. Personally, I think this is exactly how it should be as the human ego tends to become way too selfish if not kept in bounds. I don’t think people are the only valuable beings on this planet. All life and non-life are inextricably interconnected.

On the other hand, sometimes living with nature’s other denizens can be severely trying to a person. Rodent pests in the chaparral garden is one case in point.

Perhaps it’s because of the increase in human population or maybe it’s a result of the long term drought but the life that seems to be thriving best in my part of the chaparral are the rodents. These creatures have adapted well to human civilization becoming well fed and comfortably housed. Many of their predators, on the other hand, are being reduced in number by human expansion.

Have you ever tried keeping mice, rats and ground squirrels out of the vegetable garden? With their flexible skull structures, these critters can fit through anything their heads can penetrate and often that means the tiniest of holes.

There are a number of poisons on the market that will help control rodents, but they are very toxic to pets and other wildlife as well as humans. There was a product called ‘Rode-Trol’ out a few years ago that was safe and actually worked well, but for some reason — I was told the EPA wouldn’t approve it — the company was denied production. Banning easy, safe products really worries me if that’s what happened. But for the most part it seems to me the only way left, especially to use around edibles, is a physical barrier. And creating an open-air space with something like small gauge chicken wire or hardware cloth that will be impenetrable by these wily rodents is a very tall order.

I’d be willing to share, but most rodents will collect anything — plant, fruit or seed — that they don’t eat on the spot. Worse, I haven’t gotten a single thank you note after my garden has been raided and stripped bare.

I will continue the war with my local chaparral rodent pests. I will carefully ration out the last of my Rode-Trol, build enclosures and do my best to control these critters. And I’ve found if I start the most pest-attracting seeds indoors and allow the plants to reach a reasonable size before introducing them to my vegetable garden, at least some of them withstand the ravenous onslaught.

I’d love to let my accomplished hunter-cat, Nori, out to patrol the garden, but nighttime is when the rodents are most active and the little feline would be more likely to become prey to coyotes or owls rather than predator. So he’ll keep his job guarding the garage instead. Has anyone had any success with a pet bobcat? Maybe that’s what I should try next.

Originally posted 2011-01-16 10:34:55. Republished by Blog Post Promoter

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Adult whitefly and juvenile form. Sketch by Jane Gates

Whitefly is a tiny insect that infests indoor plants and feeds off of those growing outdoors in warm climates. These insects do not survive frosts, but then many of the plants they like best don’t tolerate cold either. Like aphids and mealybugs, whiteflies are sucking insects that can carry infections and will weaken the plant over time, potentially killing it.

If you spot tiny, flying, white moth-like creatures – the size of a pinhead — chances are you have an infestation of whiteflies. The eggs are even smaller than the adults and the immature forms are so tiny you won’t see them easily with the naked eye. Whiteflies will coat the underside of leaves where they quickly breed as they suck the life juices from your plant. Those tiny white moths are easy to identify as the adults fly off in clouds when disturbed.

Organic control can be done by hosing off all parts of the plant with a strong stream of water with particular attention to the underside the leaves, and/or spraying with an insecticidal soap or Neem solution. It is difficult to rid an infestation of whitefly with organic means only and you’ll have to treat frequently and regularly.

The most efficient way to kill off an attack of whitefly is to use a systemic insecticide that will be drawn up through the roots and into the sap. Insects drink the poison and die. Systemic poisons usually have a strong, unpleasant odor. They also make foliage and stems toxic so keep children and pets away from treated plants. Never use systemic insecticides on edible plants. Unfortunately, whiteflies have a tendency to quickly develop a resistance to pesticides, so it is best to continue with organic insect controls even after a chemical treatment.

Originally posted 2011-08-31 05:13:56. Republished by Blog Post Promoter

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Gopher mounds are clear signs of gopher infestation

Gophers tend to tunnel about six inches to twelve inches under the surface of the soil. So if you have gophers in your area, the best thing is to protect roots of vulnerable plants, bulbs and vegetables with chicken wire or metal hardware cloth. There are a number of controls and deterrents you can try like corn cobs dipped in tar or other pungent materials, chewing gum, smoke bombs and various stinky products like predator urine. Some people say they have had success with these deterrents and they are certainly worth a try since they are usually safe for the environment. But most controlled tests have shown them to be ineffective.

There are also traps and poisons that can be used for gophers. These are usually much more effective, though they can leave you with dead bodies to dispose of or introduce toxic substances in the ground that can sometimes be a danger to pets, children or other wildlife. Make sure you use these gopher-removers carefully and follow all instructions to avoid any dangers. To use them successfully you need to locate the main tunnel. The main tunnel is usually eight to twelve inches from the mound. The mound is only a side tunnel where the soil has been evacuated and these side tunnels are not used as a primary passageway. Use a pointed stick or a tool made for the purpose to push into the soil where you suspect the main tunnel will be. You will know you’ve found it when you feel your probe slip, unresisting, a couple of inches through the empty passageway. This is where tunnels should be baited with traps or poison. After baiting the tunnel, make sure you seal all holes or cracks from light. Traps will need regular checking. If baiting, be very careful not to drop any pellets on the ground where other wildlife, pets or children can accidentally become poisoned.

I have yet to find a way to definitively get rid of gophers. Even if I am successful at first, gophers are opportunistic critters and after a tunnel has been vacated, it is likely another family will move in. It is best to wage war on gophers before breeding season to help with population control.

But in the end, I’ve found that the gophers are resistant foes. I no longer hope to eliminate them from my property, but I do make the effort of lining garden beds with wire mesh and I plant bulbs in wire baskets. Most larger plants will grow strong enough roots after time to survive gnawing, but the smaller and more tender plants simply do best with physical protection.

Some plants that I’ve found particularly vulnerable in Southern California are roses — even old, established plants, fig trees, agaves, and almost anything in the vegetable garden. Some plants that seem to escape the gopher’s radar are onions and garlic, Daffodil and Montbretia (or Crocosmia) bulbs, many herbs like salvia, rosemary and lavender and most California natives.

Remains of a large, healthy agave after gopher damage

Originally posted 2011-02-08 18:22:12. Republished by Blog Post Promoter

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Ladybug larvae

Ladybugs, eggs and larvae are garden friends

Ladybugs are familiar to most of us, but the voracious little larval form of the lady bug often misses due credit. The somewhat triangular, elongated black crawler with red spots grows to between 1/4 – 1/2″. It doesn’t much resemble the adult beetle form, but eats many times its weight in aphids and other pests, sometimes out-shining the adult lady beetle as gardian of the garden. Although the little fellow isn’t as attractive as the shiny red beetle, treat it with respect. This is definitely a friend to honor when you find it crawling on your plants.

Note that ladybugs (Coccinela) can come in an assortment of sizes, shapes and colors. Not all are red, some being grey, black, orange or yellow. They can have a few spots, many spots or none at all. There are even some ladybugs that are reverse colored with red spots on a black background. Whether it is because ladybugs are so helpful in the garden or because they are so ornamental, these insects remain one of the favorites for children and adults alike. They decorate fabrics, decor for both indoors and out, and serve as models for sculptures and toys.

Welcome the ladybug to your garden whether you find it in mature bug form or larval form. These good bugs will help keep your landscape healthy and minimize insect pests.  I have found that in my garden if I let a couple of celery plants go to flower and seed, these seem to act as catch plants for much of the aphid population, and, as a result, a major attraction for ladybugs. Often I will find the plants festooned with eggs, larvae and adult ladybugs. They breed happily there until the food source of aphids has been depleted and then merrily wing their way to the rest of my garden plants to continue satisfying their voracious appetites for unwanted insect pests.

coccinella

Originally posted 2010-02-26 12:06:37. Republished by Blog Post Promoter

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Mealybugs and cottony aphids can look similar. They both suck juices from your plants.

Insect control in the garden can be a challenge. There are different kinds of garden-damaging little pests in every climate. Some insects are highly adaptable and are endemic almost everywhere.  Although there is a vast array of insecticides  to help handle the problem most have some residual impact on the surrounding environment. So, consider using preventative measures like good hygiene and proper watering to keep your plants strong. Small infestations can often be tolerated by healthy plants without you having to intercede.

Keep an eye on fruit trees, ornamental plants and vegetables for aphids, whitefly, scale and mealy bug. Check tender new plant shoots and under leaves; favorite places for insects to feast. You are likely to see lot of ants around plants infected with these pests due to the sweet ‘honeydew’ the insects excrete. Keeping the ant population down is always a good, if not easy idea, since they will actually ‘herd and farm’ sucking insects, spreading the infestation. If you see ladybugs or their larvae, let nature work on the problem before interceding. Also watch for the delicate green lacewings or their voracious light brown larvae that look like miniature crocodiles. These are welcome friends in the garden. Sometimes the natural balance is restored without intervention by other natural predators.

The next best choice is hosing the infested plants with a stream of water to knock off the uninvited guests. Using an insecticidal soap like ‘Safer’s’ offers a best third choice. Although all types of insecticides are sold freely at stores, –and they will kill the pests along with any good bugs present — keep in mind if you are growing edibles that the chemicals are absorbed by the plant as well as the pest. You can buy all the chemical treated edibles you want at your local grocery store. What you grow at home can be a little less picture-perfect since you’re not selling it to the public like the grocery stores. And you can wash off a few insects in the kitchen sink far more effectively than removing traces of insecticide.

One more note about insecticides. When you march into the store, you see isles piled high with colorfully packaged products all promising to cure your garden of every problem you can imagine. It’s easy to think that since these products are so familiar, so available and so easy to use, that they are safe and innocuous. None of them are. These are ALL poisons. We dump these chemicals by the ton onto our lawns and gardens. They wash into our drinking water and ocean. A dear friend of mine who is conscientious enough to carefully read all the instructions was still miserably ill after working and breathing in residue from pesticides in a garden she had just treated. Keep in mind, much of the material available to us in stores is there because it is economically profitable to sell, not because it is the best solution to a given problem. And NOT because it is safe! We humans tend to be very busy and likely to grab the quickest and easiest solution. When you chose to use poisons, the quickest and easiest may prove the most dangerous to you and those you love. Use chemicals minimally and carefully. Another problem with the wholesale use of pesticides, fungicides, etc., is organisms that are developing a natural resistance. Again, using such products judiciously will slow down this adaptation.

No one knows the long-term effect of these materials on our bodies or on the fragile cycle of Earth life on which we all depend. Be very careful when using chemicals — even plant foods. Whenever possible, opt for natural solutions: insecticidal soaps, fish emulsion food, compost, etc. And always protect yourself. It’s better to wear a mask and gloves even if there are no special instructions to do so when using any chemicals.

Originally posted 2010-12-19 09:39:58. Republished by Blog Post Promoter

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Sowbug sketch by Jane Gates

Sow bugs and pill bugs are the same critters. Once again I’m taking liberties. These critters aren’t insects. They are crustaceans and are related to shrimp, clams and lobsters. I wouldn’t recommend them steamed with butter, however. You’ll notice they amble about all over the place and cluster in dark, damp locations that they find comfy. Although they are frequently blamed for the big holes you find in stems and fruits in which they may be curled up, sow bugs or pill bugs are unlikely to have been the main culprit. Great opportunists, they’ll creep in any cave-like shelter and that damage was probably excavated for them previous to their residency. That doesn’t mean they won’t take a nibble at roots and other parts of your plants, though.

Sow bugs and Pill bugs (Armadillidium vulgare) tend to curl up into perfect little balls (hence the common name “pill bug”).  They are also known as doodlebugs or roly-polies.   They move on their numerous legs like multi-segmented, rounded tanks and usually come in neutral colors: grays, browns, blacks. If you happen upon one in a bright cobalt blue color, that individual has been infected with a disease common to, and limited to the species. In compost heaps, these creatures help break down your material into desirable compost. They do somewhat of the same job in the garden, as decaying organic matter is mostly what they feed upon. Although they may occasionally damage some tender root hairs of plants, they rarely have much of an impact on plant growth. In short, they really aren’t harmful, though they can become unsightly or disturbing to us humans when we encounter them in large numbers. If you don’t want so many of these sow bugs or pill bugs in your garden, you can collect them where they congregate under boards, rocks or other sheltered locations, and remove them by hand.

Originally posted 2010-02-24 10:41:28. Republished by Blog Post Promoter

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Fine art engraving by Jane Gates of the cute, but destructive, squirrel.

There are different kinds of squirrels; tree squirrels, flying squirrels and ground squirrels. The most common tree squirrels are gray, red, and pine. The gray squirrels are the most wide-spread and the most likely to be active pests in the garden. There are many different deterrents and repellents for sale like fox urine, sticky greases and noise makers, all of which claim to chase your squirrel problem away. However, most of these products offer sensory repellents that the squirrels will get used to and ignore. They may work for the short term though. And you may have even more success if you try using some of these deterrents together in combination.

One scent repellent that does work is the common, household moth ball. But moth balls can also be a deterrent to humans – bothering some sensitive people enough to make them ill. So it’s best to uses these repellents away from the house area. To keep squirrels from simply pushing them out of their path, put the moth balls in a little cage of wire mesh and attach it securely to the tree or area where squirrels are destructive. You will have to replace the moth balls regularly as the scent will fade quickly. There are no approved poisons acceptable for use with squirrels.

The best way to deal with squirrels is to prevent their access to the location where they cause the most damage. Where practical, build barriers like netting or cages. Use wire mesh to block entry to house areas or to cover pots where squirrels dig. Place bird feeders away from gardens and structures since the seed will attract squirrels. Place a two-foot band of thin sheet metal around tree trunks you want to protect. You should also trim back trees and large limbs so they are at least six feet from any building. Squirrels will use these as convenient runways for access.

The only remaining way to deal with a squirrel problem is to trap the critters and relocate them. Many states classify squirrels as game animals so you may need a permit to trap them.

You can maintain a program of repelling and trapping to keep the number of squirrels down in your garden. But it is unlikely you will get rid of them altogether. There are always more squirrels ready to move in as you escort the current pests out.

Originally posted 2011-02-11 08:28:38. Republished by Blog Post Promoter

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