Alternatives to Pesticide Use

Alternatives to Pesticide Use
The following list provides some general IPM techniques you can use at home or work.

Keep turf healthy. Vigorous turf that is well maintained will prevent the growth of weeds.

Water less often but for longer periods. This will allow water to soak in deep, promoting strong root systems.

Water during early morning hours to prevent water from sitting during the night, which can induce rotting and attract certain pests.

Aerate your lawn to allow water to penetrate deeply. This increases the vigor of plants and grasses.

Mow with sharp blades set as high as possible to allow for more robust grass that retains moisture and shades out weeds.

Mow frequently (every 5 days) and leave grass clippings on the lawn. If you have longer clippings, compost them.

Improve the quality of your turf by spot re-seeding, fertilizing and amending the soil with a top dressing of compost.

Develop healthy soil: Ideally a lawn should have 5"-6" of topsoil. Add plenty of compost to garden soil. Learn to make compost!

Keep plants healthy. Trees and shrubs are ore susceptible to disease and insect damage when they are stressed.

Avoid over- or underwatering.

Avoid injuring plants with mowers, weed eaters or improper pruning techniques.

Mulch under and around landscaped trees and shrubs to prevent the growth of weeds. Learn to identify noxious weeds. Mulch in the garden to prevent weed growth and retain soil moisture.

Use native and pest-resistant plant varieties. When landscaping a yard or planning a garden, choose plant varieties that are native to our region and climate. Hearty, native plants resist disease and infestation, and often use less water. Refer to the Colorado Horticultural Society list for more information.

Include plants and vegetables that repel pests, such as marigolds or garlic.

Rotate and interplant garden vegetables . Plant rotation and inter-planting prevent the buildup and spread of pests in one area or among specific vegetable types. The deeper you turn the soil in the garden, the deeper vegetable roots are able to penetrate.

Pull out and pick off pests. Regularly pulling weeds and picking insects out of lawns and gardens is one of the most effective ways to keep them from spreading. Learn to identify insect pests .

Attract predators of pests. Protect and encourage the presence of insect-feeding birds, bats, spiders, praying mantises, lady bugs, predatory mites an parasitic flies and wasps. Beneficial insect species, such as lady bugs, can often be purchased in volume. Learn to recognize beneficial insects in your garden.

Keep things clean. Keep indoor areas free of food particles, especially greasy or sugary foods. This will prevent attracting ants, cockroaches and similar scavengers. In the yard or garden, keep areas free of debris to limit nesting sites for insect and animal pests.

Last Updated on Thursday, 19 November 2009 10:16