Macbeth’s witches concocted some frightening potions featuring a host of gruesome ingredients to create a ‘charm of powerful trouble’ and trouble in the form of garden pests is something no gardener wants.
To help to protect your garden from unwanted pests this Halloween, follow the spells below - no ‘Eye of newt’ or ‘toe of frog’ needed!
The recent warm and damp weather this October has given many pests perfect conditions, so you still need to be vigilant. As a rule, you should clear debris and dead bedding plants from pots and containers as these could be harbouring soil-borne pests like vine weevil.
Never re-use container compost as these sneaky weevils will bed in over the winter and then feast on your fresh spring bedding next year. Vine weevil larvae will munch away at the root system of your plants, slowing the growth of the plant, causing the leaves to wilt and the plant will ultimately collapse through lack of nutrients.
Adult vine weevils damage plants by eating irregular notches from the edges of leaves, so if you see this damage, act quickly by treating the plant with a specific product to trap these nocturnal beasts or manually collecting them at night by torchlight while they are feeding.
Chemical control can also be used, but always read the instructions carefully. For an eco-friendly approach, encourage natural predators of the adult vine weevil into your garden, including birds, frogs, toads, shrews and hedgehogs.
Another Halloween horror are Aphids which continue to thrive in the autumn before mating and producing eggs with overwinter. Treat any Aphid infestations with a good jet of water or soapy before reaching for the chemicals, you don’t want to kill off any useful wildlife in your garden. As the weather cools you won’t generally see them from November onwards so keep your eyes peeled now!
In damp conditions, slugs will continue to chomp through any leafy crops or leaves so don’t give them any where to hide. Clear excessive leaf debris on the ground, check under pots and in any moist nooks where they might be lurking. Slugs are nocturnal creatures so be vigilant after the sun goes down and remove any unwanted night-time visitors.
Halloween horrors don’t just creep round on the ground but can appear from the air and cause untold damage – I’m talking about pigeons. These winged terrors will head straight for any winter crops or greenery they can find so act now. If you can, keep crops covered, or alternatively use string and sticks to create a barrier to stop them landing.
Finally, don’t forget your greenhouse which can be a haven for Halloween horrors like whitefly and spider mites. Clean the internal glass with soapy water and mild disinfectant and remove left over plant pots and debris which can harbour horrors. Make sure you seal any bags of compost well so that Sciarid flies don’t have a home as these little monsters will stunt or destroy your seedlings if you use contaminated compost.
By following my advice for Halloween pest horrors you should sleep well and not have gardening nightmares this year.
If you would like further advice or information, then please get in touch.
