Agriculture Reference
In-Depth Information
interest in making sure that the plants they sell you are in excellent condition,
but friends and neighbours are much less good at spotting problems. Always
treat donated plants with caution and never accept donated brassicas, or you risk
introducing club root to your garden.
Water and air
Don't just set up an automatic irrigation system and leave it at that, as supplying
the right amount of water means keeping things under constant review and pro-
viding at least some top watering, with extra for thirstier spots. Keep conditions
in the tunnel as pleasant as possible for your plants by ventilating it as much as
possible during the day, except when conditions are cold. Maintaining adequate
ventilation and avoiding overcrowding are essential to avoid botrytis and other
mould and fungal infections.
And, most importantly . . .
Watch things closely
Noticing the first colony of aphids or the first mouldy leaves makes all the differ-
ence: a few leaves pinched out and the job is done. We can't emphasise this
enough.
Pests A-Z
Ants
Ants are usually bad news in the tunnel, since they can undermine plants,
invade pots, farm aphids and drive away beneficial insects. They can also be
extremely difficult to remove, and efforts to dig out or flood the nest are not reli-
ably successful.
If the ants are not causing too much of a problem, you may need to defend only
particular plants from aphid farming. Just clearing the plant of aphids probably
won't help for long until you have denied the ants access by putting a sticky ring
of grease, petroleum jelly (Vaseline) or non-drying glue around the stem, and
making sure they can't cross from neighbouring plants. Pot-grown plants can be
defended by putting them on a brick surrounded by a 'moat' of soapy water
(which ants cannot cross) in a large plant saucer.
As a last resort, removing the whole nest is the only option. Regularly disturbing
the earth with a garden fork sometimes makes ants give up and move on, as does
repeated flooding with cold water. If these are not successful, put down a bait of
borax mixed with sugar solution each evening, using a removable bait station
