Wednesday, June 5, 2002

Birds, bees and butterflies celebrate diazinon ban

Earth-friendly alternatives let gardeners avoid the kill-all spray

The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has banned two of the most commonly used pesticides for home use based on data showing the chemicals cause more harm than previously thought.

The two pesticides, diazinon and chloropyrifos, will both be banned by 2003. They are present in 60 percent of all products marketed for pest control.

For the home gardener who is used to pesticides that kill everything and anything they are sprayed on, this will mark a huge change. Diazinon and chloropyrifos are used to kill lawn and garden pests. But they also kill birds, bees, butterflies and hundreds of other beneficial insects. Gardeners will need to become much more knowledgeable about pests and pest controls.

"Organic gardening is becoming mainstream and an increasing number of gardeners are looking for answers to all their questions," said Will Raap, founder and chairman of Gardener's Supply, known since 1983 for its earth-friendly gardening solutions.

"When you discover a problem in your garden, you need to know what pest or disease is causing it so you can determine the least toxic, yet effective solution," continued Raap. "To help gardeners identify garden pests, Gardener's Supply is offering a new web feature called "Bug Mugs."

Bug Mugs was created in collaboration with the National Gardening Association. It has color photographs, detailed descriptions and earth-friendly control recommendations for more than 50 different insects and diseases.

In the garden, the two most common types of insect pests are sucking and chewing insects. Bug Mugs helps gardeners understand the differences between these pests, and their feeding and reproduction cycles.

Sucking insects include aphids, leafhoppers and harlequin bugs. These pests insert their long mouth parts into plants and suck out the juices. As they feed, some of these insects can also transmit plant viruses. Typical signs of sucking damage include a weakening of the plant; yellowed, brown or wilted leaves; and a sticky substance or sooty black mold covering the leaves (this is especially common with aphids). Unlike most insect pests, the sucking insects look like adults as soon as they hatch from the egg.

The chewing insect group includes caterpillars and beetle larvae, such as the Colorado potato beetle, cabbage worms and tomato hornworms. They are voracious feeders that tear and mash plant tissue, nibbling on leaf margins or making holes through leaves, and they are capable of completely defoliating a plant.

Most chewing insects go through a complete metamorphosis, from eggs to larvae to pupae to adults, changing appearance at each stage. Different insects cause damage at different points in this cycle, sometimes in more than one stage. The Colorado potato beetle, for example, is destructive as a grub and as an adult.

In general, insects are easiest to control during the egg stage by simply removing or crushing the eggs, which are often deposited on the underside of leaves. Since many insects reproduce more than once during a season, you should keep your eyes open for eggs all summer long. Larvae and nymphs often overwinter in the soil or in plant debris, so garden cleanup in the fall is an important part of prevention.

Once you know what pest is in your garden, here are some products from Gardener's Supply that can help get rid of them.

Organicide, created by an organic farmer in Florida, is easy to use and controls spider mites, fungus gnats, scale, mealy bugs, whiteflies and aphids. It works on different stages of insect development including eggs, larvae and soft-bodied adult insects. It's even effective against fungal diseases like powdery mildew and black spot.

Another natural insecticide that that works at every stage of a bug's growth is Naturalis H&G. It controls aphids, ants, army-worms, white grubs, caterpillars, white flies and many other pests. This can also be used a perimeter spray around the house for ants.

If you live in the South, grasshoppers may be the most destructive pest, since they'll eat anything green, from grass to irises, hostas to roses. The Nolo Grasshopper Control is a biological insecticide that kills 58 different species of grasshopper and locusts. It takes three to six weeks to reach maximum effectiveness and it often remains active for years.

Garden Dust contains a balanced formula of pyrethrin, rotenone, sulfur and copper to control a wide array of pests including aphids, asaparagus beetles, cabbage worms, striped cucumber beetles, bean beetles, Japanese beetles, leaf rollers, squash bug nymphs, stink bugs and more.

Colorado Potato Beetle Beater is a beneficial bacteria (Bt 'San Diego') that controls potato beetle larvae, plus elm leaf beetle larvae and adults. After eating sprayed foliage, the insects stop feeding and die.

Catch-Can with Bait has out-performed any other trap for Japanese Beetles in Gardener's Supply test gardens. The reusable plastic canister holds up to 400 beetles, and is vented to prevent odors. Its double bait system (a floral and sex lure) attracts up to five times as many beetles as a single bait trap.

It's easy to put a stop to slimy slugs with the Slug-X Trap, Slug & Snail Traps and barrier Slug Stop. For a decorative way to stop slugs, try the Gardener's Supply exclusive Snail Slug Trap, an attractive ceramic snail that captures slugs by luring them with stale beer.

To learn more about controlling garden pests without toxic pesticides, visit the Gardening Info section at www.gardeners.com or call (800) 955-3370 for a free Better Gardening Bulletin - Natural Pest and Disease Control.

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