A pest-free lawn and garden may sound ideal, but is it

really? Maintaining the perfect urban landscape may

result in a reliance on pesticides that can lead to
environmental and human health problems.
Many homeowners are looking for alternative ways to
control pests in gardens and landscapes.
Fortunately, there are many biological processes that
work to keep pests in a natural balance. The ideal
garden is one with vigorous plants and protected
natural enemies of certain annoying pests. The
conventional approach - of applying pesticides
routinely, or at the rst sign of any pest - is replaced
with a lower input emphasis on nature at its best.
It is not the answer to all problems every time. But
when it works, it is an ideal way to address pest
problems while helping protect our water supplies and
environment.
The principles of this alternative
approach include:
Learning more about plants and their pests.
Selecting landscape and garden plant varieties
that are resistant to pests.
Rotating annual garden plants to reduce the
buildup of pests.
Inspecting plants frequently for the presence
both of pests and benecial organisms.
Determining if control measures are really
necessary before taking action.
XCM-221
Colorado State University
Extension. 2011.
Alternative Pesticide Management for the Lawn and Garden
Some things to consider when managing
your lawn:
Plant native grasses or hardy strains of turf-
type tall fescue, blue grama, wheatgrass, or
buffalograss instead of Kentucky blue grass.
Maintain a healthy lawn with good watering
practices: water as needed, and turn off
automatic sprinkler systems after a rain or during
cool cloudy weather.
Fertilize your lawn only as needed to promote a
vigorously growing turf that will compete well
with weeds. A soil test is one way to know what
nutrients your lawn needs. See Homeowners
Guide to Fertilizing Your Lawn and Garden,
CSU Extension bulletin XCM 222.
Maintain a mowing height no less than 2 1/2 to
3 inches, and leave the clippings on the lawn so
that their nutrients are recycled.
Core aerate the lawn once or twice a year.
Use groundcovers, mulch, or beds instead of
grass in difcult areas such as sloped ground or
shady spots.
Selecting methods that are least disruptive
to natural controls and least hazardous to the
environment.
As you experiment with alternative methods of pest
control, its a good idea to keep a record of your
observations and the results of your treatments for
future reference.
Cultural Pest Control Methods
Cultural methods seek to create the optimum growing
conditions for plants, natural predators, and
unfavorable conditions for pests.
Some things to remember in managing a garden:
Select well-adapted, disease resistant plant
varieties.
Choose the right plants for the location and soil
conditions.
Buy healthy and pest-free transplants.
Avoid under or over- watering, since both make
plants vulnerable to insects and disease.
Improve the soil by adding organic amendments.
A soil analysis helps to evaluate soil type and
fertility. Soil testing kits are available at: http://
www.soiltestinglab.colostate.edu/documents/
greenhouse_list_soil_sample_kits.pdf
Change the location of annual plants from year
to year to disrupt the life cycle of pests.
Remove infested plant residue from your garden
in the fall, so that pests do not over-winter there.
Incorporate a wide variety of plants to disperse
potential pest problems and to provide diverse
habitat for benecial insects.
Keep your vegetable garden clean of rocks, wood
and debris that provide hiding places for slugs or
damaging insects.
Xeriscape design, photo by Grant Reid.
Mechanical Pest Control Methods
Mechanical pest management options rely on
physical methods of destroying pests and include:
Hand weeding
Using a hoe or tiller rather than a herbicide
Hand-picking insects off plants
Hosing down plants to dislodge insects
Pruning diseased or insect-infested woody plants
Using mulches to reduce erosion and weeds and
to conserve moisture
Biological Pest Control Methods
Benecial organisms such as certain insects or fungi
can help control pests naturally or they may be
purposely introduced.
The main categories of these benecials include:
Predators such as lady beetles, spiders, green
lacewings, syrphid ies, damsel bugs, minute pirate
bugs, ground beetles, and predatory mites. Larger
animals such as birds, frogs, and garden snakes also
prey on pest insects.
Parasites like the tachinid y and braconid wasp lay
eggs on or inside insect pests.
Pathogens such as fungi, bacteria, and viruses that
infect pests much in the same way they infect people
or other animals.
Some garden stores and catalogs carry benefcials
such as lady beetles. Conserving benecials already
in your garden is probably more cost-effective, and
frequently is more successful. Pesticides often kill
these natural garden friends.
Benecial Insects and the Pests They Control
Table 1. Alternative Pesticides for Lawn and Garden Use*
Alternative Control Controls Notes
Bacillus thuringiensis (BT, Dipel) Caterpillars Non-toxic to mammals
Avermectin-B (Avid) Mites, leafminers, psyllids
Sabadilla (Red devil) Leaf hopper, caterpillars, squash
bugs, et al.
Low toxicity, fast knock down,
short residual, may irritate
Neem (Margosan-O) Leaf miners, loopers, mealy bugs,
thrips, whitey; some fungicidal
activity
Slow kill
Sulfur Fungicidal activity on powdery
mildew, rust, some blights
insecticidal activity on psyllids,
mites, thrips
Plant injury possible, especially at
high temperatures
Lime sulfur Dormant spray for diseases such as
blight, anthracose, powdery mildew
Bad smelling; may irritate
Bordeaux mixture Acts as a fungicide, controls
bacterial leaf spot; repels many
insects
Some cannot be used on certifed
organic produce
Diatomaceous earth Flea beetles, squash bugs, slugs Dust can cause lung and eye
irritation. Avoid inhalation and eye
contact
Insecticidal soap (Safers soap) Aphids, certain scales, mealy bugs,
psyllids, mites, thrips, white y
Non-toxic to mammals; plant
injury possible
Dormant oils Aphids, mites and certain scales
that over-winter on woody plants
Non-toxic to mammals; possible
plant injury
Summer oils Aphids, mites scales, thrips and
their eggs
Plant injury possible
*For more information, see the following factsheets from Colorado State University Extension (www.ext.
colostate.edu): Bacillus thuringiensis, 5.556; Insect Control: Horticultural Oils, 5.569; Insect Control: Soaps
and Detergents, 5.547; Insect Parasitic Nematodes, 5.573.
To encourage benecials in your yard:
Plant a diverse landscape that provides a variety
of habitats and food sources.
Learn to distinguish benefcial insects from
pests.
Minimize pesticide applications.
These natural controls often work more slowly than
pesticides and they require a food supply that could
be the very pest youd prefer to be gone. However,
they are natures way of handling high populations of
pests, they dont contaminate our water supplies, and
they can lend beauty to a garden.
Chemical Pest Control Methods
There are some naturally occurring chemicals that are
classied as pesticides but nevertheless can be used in
the context of organic gardening. In general, these
compounds tend to be less harmful to benecial
insects and they often break down more rapidly than
synthetic pesticides.
Reduced risk pesticides include microbial
insecticides, botanical pesticides, mineral-based
pesticides, and synthetic organic compounds (oils,
soaps and detergents) produced from petroleum
distillates. These chemicals are available in some
garden stores, but may have to be requested
specifcally. Some of these products are listed in
Table 1.
Please note that these products are still classifed as
pesticides and should not be used indiscriminately.
They are best incorporated into a management
program that uses all available cultural, mechanical,
and biological control methods.
Finally, it is a mistake to assume that naturally
occurring chemicals are non-toxic. Some of these are
more toxic to humans then synthetic pesticides. As
with all chemicals, always read the label instructions
prior to using these alternatives. Under certain
conditions, some of these chemicals can cause injury
to plants and animals.
Alternative Pest Management Methods
Insects:
Keep your garden free of infested plant residue
and other debris.
Prune out insect-infested parts of plants. Hand
pick bugs off garden plants
Encourage biological controls by planting
owers that provide nectar, pollen, and habitat
for friendly predators.
Avoid broad spectrum insecticides.
Use insecticidal soaps, oils, and botanicals as
appropriate.
Dislodge unwanted insects from woody plants
using a stream of water.
Accept some insect activity as part of a natural
landscape.
What to Plant to Attract
Benecial Insects
Herbs belonging to the mint family:
lemon balm, pennyroyal, thyme, spearmint.
Plants belonging to the carrot family:
dill and parsley.
Vegetables belonging to the cabbage family:
radishes, mustard and broccoli (if allowed to
fower).
Queen Annes lace, also known as wild carrot, will
serve as a nectar plant for parasitic wasps.
Aster, Asclepias (butterfy plant), cosmos,
beebalm (monarda), Russian sage, Cleome, and
purple cornower attract butteries and bees.
Learn to identify specifc insects before determining control.
Insect populations can include benecial insects that you may
not want to kill.
This publication was written by R. Waskom, Director, Colorado Water Institute, and T. Bauder, Extension water quality specialist,
Department of Soil and Crop Sciences.
Slugs:
Put beer in shallow containers or saucers to
attract and drown slugs.
Place an overturned clay pot near plants where
slugs feed. Check frequently for collected slugs.
Weeds:
Crowd out weeds with a healthy lawn.
Use mulches and non-plastic landscape fabric.
Hand pull, mow or hoe weeds.
Accept some weeds in your lawn as part of a
natural landscape.
Diseases:
Look for healthy transplants of well adapted,
disease resistant varieties.
Rotate your annuals each year.
Avoid over- or under-watering.
Thin crowded plantings to improve air
circulation.
Remove and destroy infected plants from your
garden and landscape.
For more information on protecting water quality and
the environment, please see the other Homeowners
Guides in this series:
Household Water Conservation (XCM-219)
Pesticide Use Around the Home and Garden
(XCM-220)
Fertilizing Your Lawn and Garden (XCM-222)
Protecting Water Quality and the Environment
(XCM-223)