There has never been an easier time to go green. And you know what?

It’s about time! Thank goodness gardening products like malathion,

dursban, diazinon, spectracide, triforine, and a thousand others are no

longer viable options to combat our garden pests. Thank goodness also

that we no longer have to rely on toxic chlorinated hydrocarbons and

organo-phosphates to do the job of controlling a few pesky insects.

 

Today, enviro-friendly choices abound. No longer are they hard to

find. They fill garden center shelves everywhere. At the forefront of

the green gardener’s arsenal are beneficial insects. You can buy lady-

bug beetles, praying mantids, lacewings, trichogama wasps, and bene-

ficial nematodes to kill grubworms, aphids, leafminers, spider mites,

and caterpillars (larvae).

 

Biological sprays also abound. Spinosad, a soil bacterium, is an effec-

tive, broad spectrum insecticide that controls just about every garden

pest. Thuricide (Baccilus thurengensis), a beneficial bacteria, targets

the larval stage of insects. If it’s a caterpillar it doesn’t stand a chance.

 

Serenade (Baccilus subtilis) is a beneficial bacteria that controls fungus

such early blight on tomatoes and powdery mildew on roses, squash,

and crape myrtles. All are rated as organic and safe. (Be sure to follow-

ing instructions on the labels.) There are also choices such as soap and

oil sprays that suffocate insects. Diatomaceous earth, for example,

scratches the outer shell of most crawling insects.

 

Neem oil from the Neem tree (Azaditachta indica) smothers insects

and also acts as an anti-feedant. When insects sense Neem, they go

the other way. How does Neem oil work? It enters the system and

blocks the real hormones from working properly, according to the

Discover Neem website. “Insects ‘forget’ to eat, to mate, or they stop

laying eggs. Some forget that they can fly. If eggs are produced they

don't hatch, or the larvae don't molt.”

 

With today’s organics, it simply doesn’t make any sense to choose

the more toxic option. Make the right choice, and feel good about

your contribution to a safer, greener, less toxic environment.

As always, if you have questions about any of these products, please

give me a call, send me  an e-mail, or just come by for a chat.  

                                           Happy gardening everyone!