How to Control Common Vegetable Garden Pests

As the spring gardening season begins, so does the annual bug festival. First on the list of vegetable garden trouble-makers is the Harlequin bug. The harlequin bug is a shield-shaped stinkbug that is shiny and black with orange spots and about a fourth of an inch long. They like to suck plant juices from crops like broccoli, brussel sprouts, collards, cabbage and cauliflower and can damage a whole crop in short order. They can be controlled with Pyrethrum or Spinosad. When pulling old cole crops that are no longer productive, leave a few plants in the garden for a few days so the Harlequin troupe will congregate on the leftover plants and you can hit them all at the same time with one of the aforementioned control products.

For more gardening information and book, plant, and seed sources visit: http://www.biglump.com

Next is the Cabbage Looper. This is the worst of the little green worms and they eat just about everything. They are particular damaging to squash and cucumber blossoms where you can see their excrement around the flowers. They get their name from the way they move their upper body around in a loop when disturbed. Innocent children call them inchworms, but they are not measuring the marigolds like that old song used to say. They come from those little brown moths that gather around your porch light. Control the loopers with Bt, or Spinosad. Also you can control the moths with a bug-attracting black light that electrocutes them when they get too close or suspending a 100-watt light bulb over a bucket of soapy water and turning it on at night. Be sure to locate the light at least 25 feet from your garden. The idea is too make the moths move away from the garden where they won't lay their eggs. Of course, use caution using electricity around water. The water must be changed often or it attracts mosquitoes.

It's easy to miss the rapid infestation of aphids that are ready to suck the life out of some of your early spring flowers and vegetables. They secrete that awful honeydew and will just make everything ugly and dark once the honeydew begins to grow mold. When controlling aphids, try not to use a broad-spectrum insecticide that will kill beneficial insects because aphids have a lot of natural enemies. Control with neem oil, spinosad, pyrethrum, or insecticidal soap (when the temperature is below 86.) Insecticidal soap should be washed off plants after about two hours when the weather is hot. It does not have a residual effect. You can make your own insecticidal soap by mixing 1 tbsp of liquid soap such as Castile soap, not detergent, per quart of water. Spray directly on the aphids rather than using as a general insecticide. You can also remove aphids from plants with a strong spray of water.

Cutworms come into the field from migrating moths just like the cabbage looper. They cut small plants to the ground and eat the leaves. They hang out in the soil and feed at night. Spray Bt or spinosad in the soil around the plants or cardboard collars around new transplants for organic control.

The gigantic green tomato hornworm attacks tomato plants. The tops of the tomato plants look like they were eaten by deer. They are hard to see simply because they are so big you don't expect to see anything like it. Spray water over the tomato plants and you will see them begin to move and handpick or spray with Bt or spinosad.

The leaf-footed bug is a black or brown stinkbug with a white or yellow marking across the central part of its back. It can be distinguished from the beneficial assassin bug by the way its back legs are flattened on the lower section (like a leaf.) These guys damage tomatoes and cause them to be mottled or cat faced. Control by handpicking or pyrethrum. When you smash any bug that lets out an odor when smashed, the smell will attract similar bugs to the site, so collecting and drowning is the preferred method of organic control. The best time to collect bad bugs like leaf footers is in the morning at dawn. It takes just a few minutes because most bugs cannot fly when covered with dew. Simply grab them off the plants and throw in the jar of soapy water. You can do this before you leave for work and know the garden is safe for the day.

Small beetles that resemble ladybugs but are yellow or bright green with a series of black spots or stripes on their back are either potato beetles or cucumber beetles. Control with Spinosad, Bt kurstaki strain or Pyrethrum. If using Bt or spinosad, alternate years between each product so the bugs won't become resistant. Spinosad has a residual of up to 25 days, Bt, about four days and most Pyrethrin products about 48 hours. Read labels carefully.