Photo: MyAngelG / Flickr

Gardening would be infinitely more fun than it is if it weren’t for pests that not only threaten the quality of your plants, but often kill them. Slugs, snails and praying mantises are just some of the hazards you have to contend with in your garden. The problem, though, is that the way most people deal with these hazards – through the use of pesticides – is detrimental to the environment at large. This means you’re dealing with a short-term problem by adding to a long-term problem. This, as you can no doubt imagine, is not wise. Below are some DIY pest control methods.

Beer!

Easily one of the most celebrated yet still underused techniques of killing snails and slugs in the garden is through the use of beer. While it pains us to let a good brew go to ‘waste’ like that, your garden will be eternally grateful. What you do is set up a dish filled with beer. The would-be alcoholics that are snails and slugs will drink that the second they get a whiff, promptly falling inside and drowning.

Use insects to kill other insects

As soon as folks see insect pests invade their garden, the first instinct is to fight these off with pesticides. If you hold off that temptation for a short while, and instead source other insects to kill your offending insects, you’ll be surprised how much damage control can be done this DIY pest control technique. Beetles love maggots, insect eggs and grubs. Ladybugs devour spider mites, aphids and other ‘suckers’. Butterflies and bees are more constructive in that they help with pollination.

Soap it up

The final technique on our list for eco-friendly pest control is one you practice daily (we hope!): mixing soap with water. Take a bucket, mix water and soap and put into a water canister if a spray gun isn’t available. Now spray directly on those plants affected by those annoying insects. The clean up job will surprise you.

We hope these DIY pest control methods prove useful in your home. We all know how frustrating pests can be.

Tags: Eco-friendly, garden