Homes

Gardening: Natural weed and pest control solutions

If chemicals are a concern, try some natural solutions to weed and pest control.
Non Toxic Plants

Buying natural, organic or nontoxic pesticides and weedkillers is a bit like buying a new wrinkle cream. For me, the advertising poses many more questions than it answers, for example:

What do they really mean by “improves fine lines and wrinkles in one week”? How many fine lines and wrinkles? What’s the difference between a fine line and a wrinkle? On how many people did the fine lines and wrinkles improve? Maybe I’m unlucky, but I have yet to buy a skin cream that makes even the slightest difference to any of my wrinkles, fine or otherwise, in a week, a month or until the stuff runs out.

I tend to apply the same cynicism to garden products that are advertised as “eco”, “organic”, “nontoxic” and “natural”.”Eco” is not even in the Oxford Dictionary as a real word – just as an informal adjective meaning “not harming the environment”. Nontoxic means not poisonous, and natural is defined as existing in or derived from nature. So it would be fair to say that sprinkling your vegetable garden with chocolate chips might be eco, natural and nontoxic, but it would possibly only kill the dog. Not terribly exact, then.

Having said all that, there are plenty of products on the market that do live up to their claims. You just need to read and analyse the labels to sort them out, and decide whether they are as safe as you need them to be.

Making your own weedkillers and pesticides allows you to control the ingredients – and the cost!

You can buy plant food, fertiliser, fungus spray, weedkiller, insect pesticide, and organic seeds that are described as eco-friendly, and one brand available here makes explicit claims that it is child and pet safe – it doesn’t mention adults.

The confusion that reigns over eco products is probably what causes so many people to make their own – as well as the cost saving, of course. Many homemade sprays have been used with good results to control harmful insects usually involving ingredients such as garlic, cayenne and stinging nettle which are diluted in water and sprayed on plants.

Mites, aphids & mealybugs

Try dispatching mites, aphids and mealybugs by mixing one tablespoon of canola oil and a few drops of liquid hand soap into a litre of water. Shake well and pour into a spray bottle. Spray plant from above down, and from below up to get the underside of the leaves.

Another recipe for mites, aphids and the like is to mix two tablespoons of cayenne pepper with a few drops of liquid hand soap into a litre of water. Let stand overnight, then stir and pour into a spray bottle and apply as above. Shake container frequently during application.

Fungal disease

Fungal diseases may respond to two tablespoons of baking soda in a litre of water, sprayed on to affected areas every few days

Powdery mildew

Mix equal parts milk and water, and spray on infected plants. Three treatments a week apart should control the disease.

Earwigs and slugs

For soft-bodied garden pests, sprinkle diatomaceous earth (occurring, soft, siliceous sedimentary rock) over your plants and around the edges of garden beds.

The diatoms’ particles are very small and sharp, but only harmful to the small exoskeletons of insects, slugs and snails.

This is a mechanical killer not a chemical one.

Mice

Put cotton wool balls dipped in peppermint oil, or used kitty litter, near problem areas. And I’ve read that throwing sage and rosemary on the barbecue when cooking keeps mozzies at bay.

Ants

When ants become a problem, spread cinnamon, bay leaves, cayenne pepper, salted cucumber peels or leaves from mint tea bags near their point of entry or along baseboards.

Your friends will think your housekeeping skills have slipped, but it’s worth a try. However, here’s the rub: sprays that kill harmful insects also kill beneficial insects, no matter how eco, organic, natural and nontoxic they are.

Images: Brent Wilson/ bauersyndication.com.au, Paul Suesse/ bauersyndication.com.au

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