Bug Killers for Plants

Ravenous garden pests can destroy your plants.

A beautiful garden cannot only yield a bountiful crop of food and flowers, it can enhance your property and your life. However, a pest infestation can render hours of plans and toil futile. Killing off the bugs before they kill your plants is key to gardening success. With proper preparation, dutiful maintenance and a small arsenal of appropriate bug killers, pest control is a problem you can solve.

Natural Solutions

Anyone who has seen how quickly the tomato hornworm can turn a lush plant to a brown and withered twig, or witnessed prize-winning roses succumb to the damage of aphids may be looking for an Armageddon-like attack against those plant predators. However, there are natural bug killers for both those common garden pests and many others. If you can find the cleverly camouflaged hornworm, simply removing it and depositing it in soapy water will kill it. Aphids can sometimes be controlled by introducing to your garden its natural and plant friendly predator: the ladybug. Soapy water is also an effective aphid killer, as is a powerfully dislodging spray from a garden gun. For other bugs, home remedies such as spreading cucumber skins to ward off ants, or mint and basil to ward off flies can be surprisingly effective. Additionally, you can find organic bug killers that work effectively against most bugs that can kill your plants.

Insecticidal soaps

Insecticidals soaps are made from the fatty acids of plants and animals and are effective killers of aphids, thrips, spider mites, white flies and other soft-bodied pests. The soaps interrupt the insects' normal membrane function. Although somewhat effective against bugs, repeat application is often required for full scale eradication.

Toxic Chemicals

From the somewhat benign to the highly toxic, there are a plethora of strong bug killers on the market. Sevin, containing the active ingredient carbaryl, is an outdoor insecticide which kills more than 100 garden pests. Among its targets are aphids, ants, beetles, bugs, caterpillars, flies, moths, thrips, ticks and worms. Sevin kills on contact, but also continues to kill as the bugs ingest its toxic ingredients. However, it does not penetrate the plant's tissue. Another bug killer is imidacloprid, a systemic insecticide used to protect crops such as cotton, corn, fruit, peanuts, potatoes and other vegetables. Products containing imidacloprid are marketed under the names: Admire, Condifor, Gaucho, Premier, Premise, Provado and Marathon.

Indoor Bugs

Insecticidal soaps applied appropriately can battle killer bugs.

Killing bugs on indoor plants necessarily involves different solutions than getting rid of outdoor pests; you'll want to take extra caution with chemicals where food and family unite. For the gnats, white flies and spider mites that you may find on indoor plants, nontoxic solutions like soapy water sprayed on plants can suffocate the pests. Ants can be killed with a squirt of vinegar from a spray bottle. Another solution for bugs on plants is to rub individual leaves with cotton dipped in rubbing alcohol. And a final, surefire killer for bug and bacteria alike is bleach. However, you need to be careful, since bleach will also kill the plant. You'll need to remove the plant from its pot, and shake off all the contaminated soil you can. Then, throw away the old soil, wash the pot in bleach and water and rinse thoroughly. Replant with fresh bug-free soil.

Prevention

One of the most important means to prevent pests from destroying your plants starts with their planting and care. Giving your plants a safe environment in which to thrive is the easiest way to deter bugs. Use sterile potting soil, containers and tools. Weed regularly to prevent homes and hiding places for bugs, and to allow for the healthy growth of your plants. Healthy plants are better able to withstand bug attacks. Also, isolate new plants before introducing them to your garden and quickly remove any signs of damage before the infestation spreads to the full plant and garden.

References

• Cornell University Cooperative Extension: Imidacloprid
• University of California: Pesticides, Safe and Effective Use in the Home and Landscape
• University of Kentucky College of Agriculture: General Use Insecticides for Home Gardening
• University of Minnesota Extension: Tomato Hornworms in Home Gardens
• Washington State University Extension: Guidelines for Insecticidal Soaps

Resources

• Killing the Competition