Growing your own vegetable garden can be a great way to feel healthier and it is also a great hobby. Nothing beats the joy of growing and eating your own vegetables and they taste absolutely amazing. When you start growing your own vegetables you are going to want to try to stick with organic methods if you want your vegetables to the healthiest.

You never want to use chemicals in your vegetable garden because they can get into your vegetables and make them less healthy. Unfortunately, pests can invade your vegetable garden and you might be tempted to use pesticides to get rid of them. A better solution is to use organic pest control methods to remove the pests from your vegetables. There are lots of inexpensive and easy methods you can use to get rid of pests and these methods will make it a lot easier to get rid of the pests that are invading your garden. Read on to learn about the top 4 pests that are likely to cause harm to your vegetables.

Aphids

Aphids are a common pest that can cause a lot of damage to your plants. A few aphids won’t cause too many problems, but when the aphids get out of control they can cause damage to the leaves of your plants and they can cause your plants to mold. Aphids are small and they don’t have wings. Aphids can be green, red, or black. They feed on the plants and they secrete a sticky liquid that can cause mold to develop on the plants. Your vegetables might not die, but they won’t grow as big and the leaves can start to curl.

To control aphids organically you can cut off the part of the plant that has the most aphids. You can blast them off with water. You can also make a safe organic pesticide out of soap and spray it on the affected parts of the plant. Applying diatomaceous earth to the plant will kill them naturally.

Caterpillars

Caterpillars can be a big problem in your garden because they eat the leaves of your vegetable plants and if you have enough of them they can quickly strip the leaves off your plants and stop them from growing. Some caterpillars will also eat the vegetables and damage them so you can’t eat them. Caterpillars are easy to identify and you will want to remove them when you see them.

Your best bet is to remove the eggs before they even hatch. You can also directly remove the caterpillars. Caterpillars are easy to pick off of the leaves and you can quickly get rid of them when you need to. You don’t really need pesticide sprays unless the caterpillars have really taken over and you can’t pick them off on your own.

Whitefly

If you love to grow tomatoes you are likely going to have to deal with whitefly at some point. These small white flies love to feed on tomatoes and they are resistant to many pesticides which is why you always want to use organic methods to remove them. The whitefly will suck the sap on your tomatoes and on your other vegetables. This pest can breed rapidly and the flies can cover your tomatoes and prevent them from growing. The flies will also damage the leaves on your tomatoes.

Whitefly infestations will weaken your tomato plants and they can become so weak that they die. The flies can also cause your plants to develop mold. They also carry viruses that can infect your tomatoes and kill them. Whiteflies are easy to identify as they look like small white flies. If you find them on your tomato plants you are going to want to use organic methods to control them.

Use whitefly sticky traps to catch the flies. You can also wash them off your plants and use a soap solution to kill them. Neem oil will kill the flies and the eggs. You can mix neem oil with water and spray it onto all of the vegetable plants that have been affected. Whitefies will keep multiplying and the problem is going to keep getting worse so you want to get rid of this pest right away.

Leafminers

Leafminers can cause a lot of problem with your vegetable plants and they also leave unsightly tunnels all over the leaves of your plants. They tunnel into the leave to feed and they can leave your plants more susceptible to disease and they can destroy the leaves.

Leafminers are often found on cabbage and lettuce and when these plants are attacked you are not going to want to eat them since the leaves are going to look unsightly. Leafminer infestations will stunt the growth of your plants and make them look terrible.

You can find leafminers on broadleaf vegetables and they can also be found on peppers, beans, and blackberries. The adults look like small house flies and the lay their eggs on your vegetables. When the maggots emerge they begin to eat the plants and leave a trail of damage and black feces in their wake. You can’t eat the affected leaves since they have been contaminated by feces.

You can control them organically by monitoring the leaves closely. If you see any signs of tunnelling squeeze the leave at the end of the tunnel which will kill the larvae. You can also pick off affected leaves. Sticky traps can catch the flies and you can also treat the leaves with a water and neem oil spray.

Your garden can be a place that gives you a lot of joy and creates healthy food for you to eat. You need to make sure that you really take good care of your garden and that means that you need to monitor it daily for pests. It doesn’t take long for pests to infest your garden and they can leave a lot of damage in their wake so you need to make sure that you practice organic pest control with http://discoverziehler.com/lawn-care-beavercreek/.