Tips & Tricks: Insects and Weather
2022 is an unpredictable year in many ways, especially in the garden; Late frosts, downpours, droughts, insects, and heat waves. A lot of gardeners struggled this year, including us. But like many, we've made the best of what we've grown. To help you out, we've put together some tips and tricks to help you through the unexpected and the expected.
Insects
This year we have a large number of insects, especially aphids, slugs, mealybugs, rabbits, and pigeons. Great for the ecosystem but not so great for your crops. If you want to eat them yourself, that is. Woodlice infestations in strawberry beds and entire beds are not a gardener's dream to be eaten whole.
Aphids and other sap-sucking insects
The best way to keep sap-sucking insects like aphids, green flies, and blackflies off your crop; Naturally and humanely, you should plant sacrificial plants around the plants you want to harvest.
Examples of Sacrificial Plants:
nasturtium,
marigolds,
Herbs like;
Basil,
Parsley.
But we've found that all herbs and flowers can help reduce insects that suck the juice from your fruits and vegetables. Try planting flowers and herbs around your garden that will attract pollinators and reduce your unwanted pests.
Home Garden Tips For You 👇
| Home Garden 1 | Home Garden 2 | Header Cell 3 |
|---|---|---|
| Aggrassive plants avoid | Shade Garden | Best annuals plants |
| Table Top Plant | Small Vegetable Garden | Colour full Garden |
| Benificial Insects | Small House plants | Best Garden Soil |
Not only can you help your garden thrive and look beautiful, but you can also get some amazing cut flowers for your home!
Snails
Snails can be one of the biggest pests in the garden, and they can come out at night or in wet weather when you're away and destroy an entire bed in one sitting. They are hungry little things! There are a few methods to prevent harm to snails. Plant slug deterrent plants around the edges of your beds. Rosemary and fennel are good examples of these and they're also great to eat, so don't waste space!
Snails love the cover, so reducing their shelters can help reduce numbers in your garden. This is a big disadvantage for brick borders and raised beds because they make fantastic habitats for snails. Try using a humane slug trap to mimic the design of the garden, but you can take away and empty the disposal source. You can also try mulching around your plants, we have coffee grounds, eggshells, wood ash, and garlic powder ready in the shed. We put it on almost all plants and it works great to keep little bugs away!
If all else fails, chickens and ducks are great pets to keep the slug population down while you get some lovely eggs! If allowed, they provide definite benefits in several ways, such as reducing snails, egg production, and providing compost to manure.
Woodlice
Woodlice are creatures similar to snails in that they prefer romantic covered areas such as raised beds or densely planted areas such as strawberry beds. Although not a major pest, they can overrun your crop. We have found that they especially like strawberries and radishes. They are active mainly at night and they absolutely adore moist areas. While they are generally considered to be very beneficial to the garden as they help in composting, they are not a major threat.
Keeping them out of your crop is easy, just make sure you don't grow in raised beds with wood, keep strawberry beds thin and make sure the soil doesn't get soggy from over watering.
Gardening Tips 👇
Rabbits and pigeons
These cute fluffy bunnies and wild pigeons are very cute, but they can invade your crops in no time. The best way to reduce this is to surround the outside with crops that rabbits and pigeons like to eat, netting for pigeons or chicken wire for rabbits. They especially love spinach, beans, broccoli, sweet, carrot tops, and any brassicas. Keep covered until they are big enough to chew well.
Downpours
Pouring down after a heat wave is the best time to give your plants a much-needed soak. Remember not to plant any seeds at this time or they will wash away. If necessary, cover with a wooden board to reduce the risk of them running away from you. Put out as many buckets of water as you can, this is the best time to prepare for drought.
Lawn Maintenance Tips 👇
Droughts and heat waves
Gardening can be very tiring work when there's a drought or heat wave, and you still have beds of crops to water. We've all experienced this year, so here are some tips to make life easier!
Early morning watering can help tremendously here when it's still cool and it's best to let the water run through the soil without losing too much water to evaporation, but if you can't get down early in the morning the next best thing is evening. Avoid watering in the heat of the sun as it can burn your crops from the splash back and you could lose a ton of water due to rapid evaporation.
Create small trenches around thirsty crops such as courgettis to allow water to pool around the plant, ensuring nothing goes to waste and they get the full benefit.
Bury the bottles near your plant and water directly to the roots, reducing wasted water and allowing your plants to get water where it needs it. Focus on the root zone rather than the leaves, as it is the roots that need water, not the leaves.
Special Tips 👇
Late frost
The last frost of the year was very late, with evenings below zero in some parts of England until June. Without a heated greenhouse, it becomes very difficult to start any seedlings without filling your house with seed trays. Here are some crops you can start before the last frost:
Parsnips
corn,
onion,
Spinach,
carrot,
Seed potatoes.
They can be transplanted once the ground has sufficiently thawed.
But if you can't wait long and you don't have a heated greenhouse, you can keep a compost pile inside a greenhouse or polytunnel, which will raise the temperature significantly. When compost piles are complete and finished, the tops can also be used to grow squash plants.
Or try covering seed trays overnight with sheep's wool or cardboard. To reduce the risk of seed trays freezing, water in the evening rather than in the morning, and try using water that sits outside and warms up. They will thank you.
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