Managing Garden Pests

Basil -The oils in basil repel thrips, flies and mosquitoes. Plant basil along side tomatoes for larger, tastier tomatoes.

Bee Balm - This plant attracts bees to the garden and is another plant that you can grow with tomatoes.

Borage - This plant repels tomato hornworms and cabbage worms and attracts beneficial bees and wasps. Borage also adds trace elements to the soil. An annual, it readily comes back each year from seed.

Catnip - This plant repels just about everything. Keeps away flea beetles, aphids, Japanese beetles, squash bugs, ants, and weevils. Make sachets of dried catnip to deter ants.

Chives - Plant chives to repel Japanese beetles and carrot rust flies. It will also help prevent scab when planted among apple trees.

Dahlias - Dahlias repel nematodes.

Dill -Dill is best planted with cucumbers and onions. During the cool season plant it with lettuce. Dill attracts hoverflies, predatory wasps, Swallowtail butterfly caterpillars and tomato hornworms. Plant at a distance as a trap crop to keep away from the garden. Dill repels aphids and spider mites. Sprinkle dill leaves on squash plant to repel squash bugs.

Garlic - Plant near roses to repels aphids. Garlic deters codling moths, Japanese beetles, root maggots, snails and carrot root fly.

Lavender - Lavender is a favorite among many beneficial insects; repels fleas and moths.

Marigolds - French marigolds repel whiteflies and kill bad nematodes. Mexican marigolds offend a host of destructive insects and wild rabbits as well. If you choose marigolds for your garden they must be scented to work as a repellant; they also attract spider mites and snails.

Petunias - Repels asparagus beetles, leafhoppers, a range of aphids and tomato worms.

Sunflowers - Sunflowers will draw aphids away from other plants. I have seen them draw the grasshoppers away from the garden but the hoppers will cut right through a 2 inch diameter stem. It was a bad year of drought.