THE GRAINETHUMB

WHAT’S BUGGING YOU?

By George Graine

Fairfax County Master Gardeners

The concept of pest is entirely a human notion. There are no pests in nature. For humans, pests get to be pests when they teeter out of balance with their environment and do things we don’t want them to do.

Eric Grissell in Insects and Gardens

For many of us the growing season is nigh. After ogling garden catalogs and taking in some home and garden shows, what’s next? Is it time to mow the grass or perhaps execute plans for a landscape makeover? If in fact you decide to make some changes to your landscape, have you also taken into account how the ravages of an insect population can be reduced? Do not fret. Time is on your side so that you can incorporate some ideas into any garden design you perhaps only thought about before turning your plan into reality.

The concept of good bug vs. bad bug (including mites, borers, etc.) is not a new thought. Beneficial insects that fit into the category of predators and parasitoids are considered “good”; therefore, those that pierce, suck, and nibble plants are “bad” and surely are not something to be trifled with. Rather than get into the warring factions of good versus bad, this article emphasizes how one can modify a garden to attract “friendly” insects. Then you can spend more time in other pursuits instead of with a sprayer. Most pesticide products will harm beneficial insects just as easily as the target population that is harmful to plant material. A better strategy is a comprehensive integrated pest management approach as opposed to a hit ‘em with a spray product.

The solution to what’s bugging you is relatively simple. It is all about diversity of plants in your landscape. Consider flowers that will bloom throughout the growing season. This will provide a better habitat (read food) for the insects you want to keep around. Flowers also supplement their food supply with pollen and nectar. The fact is that a complex environment with flower gardens, trees, shrubs, vegetable gardens, and yes, even some weeds are all lures for many different insects. Essentially this means many different species of insects often gather where they can feed and augment their own species. In effect, you should aim to create a natural ecosystem through biological pest control by encouraging beneficial insects to “hang out” in your landscape. (As an aside, let us not forget to plant flowers and food sources for butterflies.)

It is a fact that in the insect world beneficial insects are more numerous than what you might have imagined. If you thought otherwise it is because you often observe insect “damage” and rarely see, for example, the battle royal taking place between ladybugs larvae/adult and aphids. The flip side of really seeing the results of a parasite is the tomato hornworm covered with a bunch of egg-like pupae of the teeny brachnid wasp. This is an insect David and Goliath happening. It does not get any better than this.

Here’s the bottom line. Just as you heard about the need for honey bees, so too should you keep the bad bugs in check by encouraging good bugs to thrive in your landscape. They will work for you at practically no cost. Do not fall for garden catalogs that advertise mantids and other insects as a cure-all. You cannot put a leash on a mantid even though it might seem like a good idea. They have a voracious appetite and after they clean out yummy insects they are off to “greener pastures” so to speak.

As an afterthought, if you have birdhouses and feeders, you will get a bonus because the birds will help to reduce the insect population. Unfortunately, like sprayers, birds are opportunists and may not be particular about what they care to eat.