Agriculture Reference
In-Depth Information
hot peppers, and steep it for a day in a gallon of water to
which a single drop of dish soap has been added. Another
repellent mixture is garlic, manufactured the same way. One
thing that I do, with great success, is make hot pepper and
garlic mixtures in a coffee maker that has been set aside for
agricultural use only. There are some commercial repellent
preparations worth noting as well, including CropGuard and
Hot Pepper Wax.
There is some evidence that certain plants can repel pest
insects. According to numerous sources, for example,
nasturtiums and radishes repel cucumber beetles. I have
experimented extensively with this practice and found no
difference in cucumber beetle populations between cucumber
plants surrounded by radishes and intertwined with
nasturtiums and cucumber plants grown on their own. On the
other hand, I have found that onion family crops repel
wireworms, so I interplant leeks with my parsnips. A number
of sites on the Internet list repellent plants, so I encourage you
to experiment with the reputed properties of repellent plants
and keep notes to see what works best for your garden.
Active Reaction
Even the most conscientious farming practices and most
vigilant preventive measures will often fail to prevent pest
and disease problems. Once these problems become apparent,
reactive measures are in order.
Reactive measures will often include some of the same
materials and methods as passive and active prevention. For
example, many fungal infections can be eradicated by the
timely application of compost tea, neem oil, or garlic oil.
