From the article: Common Vegetable Garden Pests and How to Get Rid of Them
There are many effective ways to deal with insect, mammal, and bird pests in the vegetable garden that don't rely on chemicals to do the job right. I'm asking you, About Organic Gardening readers, to share your tips. Have a great way of dealing with tomato hornworm? Tell us about it! Figured out how to rid your garden of slugs? Share it! By pooling our knowledge, we can give our fellow organic gardeners more tools to help them grow a successful vegetable garden. Share Your Secrets!
Slug control
- A small saucer (the kind tea cups sit on)filled with beer - slugs love beer. They dive in for a drink and can't get out.
- —Guest Stefanie B
Insects
- I hand-pick most pest insects and place in plastic containers. I also hand-sweep clusters such as aphids into the containers. I then freeze them. I make my own suet and in the winter I add these insects for extra protein for the birds.
- —Guest MickieC
Pest Control
- Sprinkle red or black ground pepper on the leaves (yes you have to re apply after the rain but it is inexpensive and doesn't harm the plants or the animals. I also place small cups of blood meal around the garden. I use caps from detergent bottles or small bottles from medicines, aspirin, and film containers. I bury them in the ground leaving about 1 inch sticking out of the ground and fill it with granulated blood meal. This lasts all summer.
- —Guest krukow
Best way to deal with garden pests
- Give birds an alternative to eating your vegetables. Set up several bird feeders around the perimeter of the garden and fill them with what your birds like to eat.
- —Guest Doc Stone
