A vegetable or container garden can ensure a constant supply of fresh foods for you and your loved ones. The Colorado growing season supports numerous crops, some that thrive in the warm summers and others that equally do well in the cool fall season. With simple crop management skills and post-harvest preservation techniques, you can have enough supply of organic foods. Pest and rodent control is one of the most important crop management skills. Without a good control plan, pests can ruin your garden. In this article, we will learn about common pests in Colorado and how to keep your crops pest-free.
Importance of Protecting Your Garden from Pests and Rodents
You have numerous reasons to protect your vegetable garden from pest infestation. Here are a few reasons why you should protect your vegetable garden from pests and rodents.
Increase Yields
Pest and rodent attacks injure, break, or cause other crop damage on your crops. The injured crops become unhealthy and stunted, leading to decreased yield. Keeping the pests and rodents away from your vegetable garden maximizes yield when integrated with other crop management practices.
Helps in Controlling Diseases
Controlling pests and rodents reduces the risk of crop disease infection. Some pests and rodents can contribute to the spread of crop diseases. Besides attacking crops, pests like aphids can spread viruses, while rodents introduce fungal diseases into your crop garden.
Cost Saving
Treating a pest-infested garden can be expensive. You can avoid the high treatment costs by protecting your vegetable garden from pest infestation.
Preserving Garden Aesthetics
Spending time in a green garden is therapeutic. However, a pest-infested garden is unattractive.
Common Pests in Colorado and The Plants They Impact
While we may not exhaust the list of crop pests in Colorado, here are the most common ones.
Aphids
Aphids are small insects that affect a range of vegetables, including kale, cabbages, and tomatoes. They suck juices from the plants, leading to leaf discoloration, curling, and yellowing. Aphid infestation also leads to stunted growth.
Japanese Beetles
The Japanese beetle attracts over 300 plant species, including grass lawns, roses, potatoes, grapes, and peppers.
Whiteflies
Another common garden pest is the white fly. It is related to the aphid, and its infestation weakens the affected crops.
Rodents
Rodents are small gnawing mammals such as rats, mice, porcupines, hamsters, beavers, and many more. They attack almost every part of the crop, including stems, leaves, roots, tubers, fruits, and seeds. They cause huge losses since they not only damage field crops but can also damage stored grains, fruits, and tubers. Larger rodents like squirrels and chipmunks damage ripe fruits, including tomatoes and cane tops. The rodents are more active in summer and fall.
Birds
Birds also pose a risk to your vegetable garden. They can uproot seeds, damage seedlings, eat fruits, berries, and grains.
How to Protect Your Crops Against Pest and Rodents?
You can apply different methods to protect your plants from pests and rodents. You can prevent pests and rodents from accessing your garden or use various management methods if your crops are infected. Preventative measures include the use of;
- Physical barriers like netting and cages
- Preventative chemicals like pesticides
- Organic methods like introducing pest and rodent predators
- Control measures, on the other hand, include pesticide spraying, handpicking, trapping, or introducing predators.
Control Pests and Rodents for Increased Crop Yield
Pests and rodents impact plant health and yield. Controlling pests and rodents can improve plant health and maximize yield. Nick’s Garden can help you identify common pests and rodents in Colorado and the different control methods. Contact us today to learn more about protecting your garden from pests.
