Agriculture Reference
In-Depth Information
Smoothie Garden Solution
Aphids can easily spread viral and bacterial diseases. Controlling
aphids often helps you stop the spread of the disease. Control aph-
ids by attracting braconid wasps, hoverflies, lacewings, and lady-
bugs to your garden. An alternative is knocking the aphids off the
plant with a strong stream of water.
Before any disease can occur, three elements must be present in
your garden: a susceptible plant, a pathogen, and favorable condi-
tions for the pathogen to survive. To control or manage plant dis-
eases, you need to remove one or more of these elements. A disease
cannot develop if one of these elements is missing. Planting disease-
resistant varieties of vegetables can remove a susceptible plant from
this equation. Pulling out and destroying the infected vegetable plant
removes the pathogen. You can make it difficult for pathogens to
survive by creating an environment that is not compatible for them.
For example, avoid overhead watering or take time to trellis a plant
so it has better air circulation. Both of these measures make it more
difficult for the pathogen to survive.
The best way to keep your vegetable garden free of pests and dis-
eases is to have healthy soil, to give your plants the proper amount
of water, to use crop rotation, and to keep your garden and tools
clean. A healthy plant will be better able to fight off anything that
comes its way. No vegetable garden will be totally free of all pests or
diseases, and remember that you want beneficial insects and animals
to stay around.
