Many new gardeners are out looking for ways to get rid of the pests they find in their garden. Sure, there are plenty that will eat your veggies or kill your plants, but many don’t realize that some of those bugs and animals they see are good. To reduce how much pesticides you use to grow your garden, you need to use some bugs and animals to help do some of the work for you.
Not only will you depend less on chemicals to keep your plants from dying but your life will be easier. Letting the animals and bugs give you a hand is a great way to do it naturally and without too much fuss on your part.
In this article, we will go over how you can invite some of these beneficial animals into your garden to help it thrive.
Bees
Humans would simply not exist for long if bees were to disappear from the Earth. They are responsible for just about every plant being able to propagate so they can grow fruit and vegetables.
Without bees in your garden, you won’t grow much. To make sure that every plant is fertilized so you can maximize your harvest you should do your best to attract them.
Set aside some space for growing flowers that will bring bees into your yard. While they are there, they will find your other vegetable and fruit plants to also pollinate. If you also add things they need like a water fountain, which also will beautify your backyard, the bees will go back to the hive and let the others know there are flowers for food and plenty f water. This will bring a steady flow of bees to your yard.
Ladybugs
One of the most common pests when you have things like peas, beans and peppers are aphids. They are tiny, multiply quickly and suck the water out of your plants without you hardly even noticing that they are there.
Luckily, ladybugs love to eat aphids so if you can invite them to your garden, they will take care of them for you. The trick is to plant some items that ladybugs also like so they will be enticed to make your garden home. Another bit of luck is the fact that ladybugs love herbs like dill, cilantro and fennel so you can plant a nice herb garden that will improve your cooking while also keeping your aphids at bay.
Hummingbirds
Let’s say that you are allergic to bees and would rather not try to attract them. The next best thing is a hummingbird as they pollinate flowers by drinking the nectar. At the same time, they also love to eat fruit flies.
If you have lots of fruit trees around, then hummingbirds are an essential guest to invite over. Plant lots of flowers and also make sure to have sugar water feeders strategically placed around where you need the birds to congregate.