Pest Control for Perennials

With their great variety of colors, shapes and sizes, perennials are a great choice for any garden. They also have another important advantage over other types of flowers. Unlike annuals, which must be replanted year after year, perennials, by their very nature, are able to regenerate from year to year. This means you're free to plant once and enjoy many seasons of beautiful blooms.

While the actual longevity of perennials varies from variety to variety, some types, such as peonies, have been known to last for decades once planted.

This longevity, however, comes at a price, because perennials need more care when it comes to maintenance, weeding and pest control. Unlike the annual garden, which is dug up and restarted each year, perennials remain in the ground over the winter and this can make them more prone to common garden pests than other types of plants.

One of the best defenses against pests in the perennial garden is a healthy and vigorous selection of plants. The healthier the plants the better they will be at fighting off common pests and garden infections. Plants that are well cared for and vigorous will be much less susceptible to damage by insects and other pests.

The vigilance of the gardener is another important way to prevent pest infestations from getting out of control. A good gardener is constantly on the lookout for early signs of problems, such as holes in the leaves, marks or wounds on the stems and other signs of pest problems.

Having a good guide to common garden pests and diseases is a good idea as well, since it can sometimes be difficult for the untrained eye to tell exactly what the problem is. Diagnosing the problem is the best way to cure it quickly, before it can spread.

Gardeners have a choice when it comes to pest control in their gardens. There are of course a great many chemical pesticides on the market, but there are a number of natural methods as well. Many experienced gardeners prefer to start out with the natural approach first, and move onto chemical methods only when natural attempts have failed.

One great natural pest control approach is to use beneficial insects to control harmful pests. Many garden supply stores sell these beneficial insects and it's usually easy to seed a garden with these insects and get them to stay and remove harmful pests.

In addition, aphids can often be controlled simply by spraying plants with a very dilute mixture of soapy water, followed by a rinse of clean water. This method often works just as well and is considerably less expensive than chemical methods, and it's proven effective even on serious aphid infestations.

Another great way to control pests is to buy pest and disease resistant varieties of plants. Many perennials have been selectively bred to be resistant to common pests and diseases. If these varieties are available it's a good idea to seek them out. Even if they're more costly up front, the money you save on pesticides and other chemicals can make them quite cost effective.