Chemical-Free Pest Control

[farmin68]

I'm ditching the poisons for safer, more natural methods of controlling pests and disease.

I'm especially interested in controlling cucumber beetles and anything that damages tomatoes and sweet corn.. Anyone have any experience with any of this? If so, what has (and hasn't) worked for you?

 

[ADR]

2 bottles of hot sauce of your choice (or habenero mash from home grown peppers), 1 whole garlic clove smashed, and thimble full of dawn. Add enough water to make one gallon. Let set for 5 days and then strain through a cheese cloth or coffee filter. Put in hand held sprayer and go to town.

 

[WTM]

neem oil but its not a spray and forget, you have to use it religously, and insecticidal soap.

i dont do 100 percent organic especially with japanese beetles, for those i use sevin spray. my grandmothers used sevin, lol, enough to turn the garden white and both lived to be 100.

on tomatoes you have to keep a check on hornworms. corn i dont have too much of a problem except for coons on peaches and cream. coons wont touch silver queen corn. its too tall.

the key i think is to use as much organic fertilizers and compost that you can. ive always heard that synthetic fertilizers makes a plant bitter which attracts pests.

 

[gtk]

Chemical free is going to be work.. There was a reason all these pesticides have been developed, it made it a lot easier !

I used to work with a "master gardener" who preaches chemical/organic free gardens.. He planted certain plants next to his vegetables that had "repellent" properties to them, and he used organic much extensively .

after loosing the war against squash bugs year after year, i decide i'm going this route next time i plant squash/pumpkins..

 

[WTM]

Chemical free is going to be work.. There was a reason all these pesticides have been developed, it made it a lot easier !

I used to work with a "master gardener" who preaches chemical/organic free gardens.. He planted certain plants next to his vegetables that had "repellent" properties to them, and he used organic much extensively .

after loosing the war against squash bugs year after year, i decide i'm going this route next time i plant squash/pumpkins..

lol on the flame thrower. hey that a actually works on weeds. burn the top of the weeds and it will die in a day or 2.

i also do companion planting as you mentioned as well as crop rotation. if you can, rotate your squash on opposite sides of the garden and it will cut down on the amount of squash bugs you have. never plant corn and tomatoes next to each other. corn goes well with beans and cukes. basil goes well with tomatoes. planting flowers like marigolds also help as a bug deterrent.

 

[Bucket]

Chemical free is going to be work.. There was a reason all these pesticides have been developed, it made it a lot easier !

I used to work with a "master gardener" who preaches chemical/organic free gardens.. He planted certain plants next to his vegetables that had "repellent" properties to them, and he used organic much extensively .

after loosing the war against squash bugs year after year, i decide i'm going this route next time i plant squash/pumpkins..

That reminds me of my buddy's neighbor lady. She was very much against pesticides or chemical weed killer and used a torch to kill weeds in her flower beds beside her house. One day she burned her house down.

 

[DaveB]

I will be interested in learning if anyone is successful at keeping the squash bugs at bay.

I do not believe that is possible.

 

[WTM]

I will be interested in learning if anyone is successful at keeping the squash bugs at bay.

I do not believe that is possible.

only killed 1 last year and mashed all of its eggs. neem oil will kill the little ones if they hatch. rotation in the garden is the key. never plant them near the same spot in consecutive years.

 

[TnTurk]

Diatomaceous earth works pretty good on insects with an exoskeleton. I get it at Lowe's.

 

[WTM]

Diatomaceous earth works pretty good on insects with an exoskeleton. I get it at Lowe's.

it also kills beneficial insects, ie ladybugs, bees, wasps, etc. use it sparingly.

BT is good for larval stages but does not harm the good insects.

a citrus spray does well with caterpillars.