Responsible Pest Control In Gardens and Homes

Pesticides Task Force Inc.
Westmount Post Office
P.O. Box 117
Westmount Québec
H3Z 2T1

Why is this pamphlet necessary?

There is much misinformation about pests, pesticides and their alternatives.
You cannot rely on others (governments, pesticide sales people, etc.) to protect you from danger.
This pamphlet will provide you with correct information and empower you to make responsible decisions.

PESTS

Pests comprise relatively few species.
Through misinformation, people believe that most insects are harmful, whereas only 0. l % are pests, 99.9% being neutral in their effects or essential to our survival as pollinators, decomposes, regulators of pests, and as food for other beneficial animals such as many fish and birds.
Pests are not the causes of problems but rather the symptoms of badly designed, mismanaged or malfunctioning gardens, farms, forests, etc. Hence the solution is to correct their design and management, taking direct actions against pests only in emergencies.
Many organisms are regarded as pests only because of current "fashions" that cannot be justified in terms of health or well-being, e.g., our desires for cosmetically perfect fruits and vegetables and weed-free lawns.
Many weeds in lawns are indicators of unbalanced or compacted soils. Removing the weeds annually will not correct the underlying causes which, if not dealt with, will ensure that the problem will recur.

PESTICIDES

Pesticides include fungicides, herbicides, insecticides, miticides and other biocides that are used to reduce the number of unwanted organisms.
Although the first two groups are slightly specific, insecticides and miticides are nonspecific chemicals that are as poisonous to beneficial organisms as they are to the pests; and all are poisonous to people and pets.
Most harmful side effects of pesticides are not immediately apparent because they are sub-lethal, and may be delayed.
These effects are aggravated by the tendency of pesticides to persist in the environment.
As the pesticide disperses and breaks down, the pests return, and sometimes new pests are created due to the poisoning of their natural enemies.
Eventually all pests become resistant to the materials use against them.
Despite these problems pesticides have become an essential part of our food and fibre production systems, partly because of their "magical bullet" image and ability to give quick results, and because their harmful effects rarely enter into the cost-benefit analyses.
As we become more aware, responsible, and take info account long-term effects, it is likely that this heavy reliance on toxic chemicals will gradually be replaced by safe alternatives, and pesticides will only be used in an emergency or as a last resort.

ALTERNATIVES

Alternatives to pesticides, rather than focusing on the elimination of "enemies", aim to achieve satisfactory control and prevention at comparable or lower costs, while minimizing risks to the environment and humanity. Instead of relying on single, simple, quick solutions such as pesticide use, they generally involve taking several combined actions, some of which do not need to be repeated.
These include cultural, physical, chemical, biological and ecological strategies.

RESPONSIBILITIES

Responsibility for behaving wisely is yours. This includes thinking about the short and long-term effects of what you do on yourself and your family, your neighbours, and on other organisms and future generations. While experts can give you advice, only you are responsible for your actions. Thus, we need to think differently about pests and take different types of actions to prevent and control them.
Often people mistakenly believe that any product that can be purchased in a store is safe, or that they are protected by governments and regulatory agencies. Because of the short-term tenure of governments and the economic constraints in which they operate, acceptable levels of safety are often determined in relation to profitability and commercial pressures. You do not have to make this compromise.
To act wisely, however, you must become familiar with the facts and be willing to make approaches to solving problems that may differ from the majority in society who may be less knowledgeable or aware than yourself.

DO YOU HAVE A PEST PROBLEM

The presence of an insect or weed does not necessarily mean that it is a pest. It is normal to have a few of these organisms around; indeed, their absence would be cause for alarm. So the first thing we need to change to is our expectations of what is normal.

It is only when these organisms become unusually abundant that we need to examine the situation to find the causes and take remedial action.
In most cases the problem can be traced to something inappropriate that we did, such as over-fertilizing, planting at the wrong time or in an unfavourable location; or it may be due to natural deficiencies within our soils, or because of a lack of natural controls.
Responding to these causes requires us to learn about the pest and about the way it is likely to respond to different conditions that discourage potential pests.

HOW TO PREVENT AND CONTROL PESTS WITH MINIMAL RISK

The key to pest prevention in the garden or lawn is healthy soil, healthy resistant plants, appropriate planting designs and careful environmental management.
Most soils require the regular addition of organic matter, such as compost, to remain healthy.
The soil can be loosened but it should not be cultivated in such a way that its surface layers become buried under the deeper layers because this will kill most of the beneficial organisms.
By following these rules we can create ideal food and space conditions for decomposers and their predators. These beneficial soil organisms will then be able to prevent the development of root diseases, and some of the predators will feed on the plant pests.
Choose plant varieties that are resistant to local pests and diseases.
Arrange planting times so that they don't coincide with the occurrence of potential pests, e.g., by delaying planting carrots by two or three weeks, attack by carrot rust fly can be avoided.
Minimize stress to plants when transplanting, and provide optimum conditions for seeds. This creates strong plants that are most able to resist and recover from pest attack. Rotate annuals, e.g., soil improving crops such as legumes (peas, beans and clovers) are followed by heavy feeders (tomatoes, corn, potatoes) and then light feeders (carrots, lettuce, beets, onions).
Companion planting can be used to discourage or control some pests. Onions and carrots planted together to repel one another's major pests, and the smell of herbs and flowers may prevent the pests from finding their favourite hosts.
Having plants with small flowers (e.g., parsley, dill, Queen Anne's lace, lovage) in the garden throughout the year will attract small insects that will parasitize and kill many pests. .
Some of these beneficial insects can be purchased and released at regular intervals as biological controls, but they will only remain in the same area if the conditions are suitable.
Commercial and homemade traps can sometimes be effective in controlling pests. Earwigs can be killed by trapping them in skewed up newspaper stuffed into flower pots placed upside down on the ground at night and shaking them out into soapy water in the morning. Hand removal of pests and diseased parts of plants is another time tested remedy.
Most caterpillars can be killed by spraying them with a suspension containing a bacterium called Bacillus thuringiensis, available in several commercial formulations.
You can make your own pathogen spray by collecting several dozen insects and placing them in a blender with a little water (use rain water rather than tap water to avoid the chlorine), sieve the resultant mixture and dilute it with several times the amount of water, then spray it on the pests.
Some of the least persistent insecticides are the "botanicals", which are made from plants (the most common is pyrethrum); but as with all insecticides, these should be used with great care and only as a last resort because they also kill beneficial organisms.You can also use a blender to make your own botanical pesticides from different types of plants.
This is one of the many ways you can experiment and design your own unique methods of control, but be careful to avoid using toxic materials. Natural materials can be just as toxic as synthetics.
To control carpenter ants, earwigs, and stored food pests, use diatomaceous earth. D.E. is a non-toxic powder that scratches the wax off the insects body causing it to dry up and die. This is particularly useful within a house or other enclosed space. Place it in corners, on window ledges and in dead spaces such as between walls and in the roof.
In late summer or fall remove the remains of annual plants so that they do not provide overwintering sites for pests.
An ideal way to do this is to compost them. This disinfects them and creates an ideal soil amendment at the same time.
Soil should be kept permanently covered with green (plants) or brown materials (mulches and amendments). Bare soil encourages erosion and loss of valuable nutrients, which in turn creates favourable conditions for pest attack.
Weeds in a lawn should be controlled by creating conditions whereby the grass can out-compete them, e.g. by setting the mower so that the grass is cut at 6-7 cm. high or higher (i.e., higher than usual); removing any thick thatch; infrequent deep watering; aerating the soil, particularly where there is compaction; and adding balanced amendments, such as sieved compost, usually in the fall.
The main preventative approach, however, is to create ideal conditions for the grass prior to seeding it or laying sod.
If weeds are not too plentiful or the area not too large, hand weeding may provide a safe, short-term solution.
If you have a persistent pest problem, seek advice from an expert in the use of safe methods of pest control, ideally one who is not trying to sell you something.
Only use pesticides as a last resort. If you do decide to use them, be sure that you are completely aware of the safety precautions that must be taken, because knowledge is your best insurance against mishaps. Most important of all; read the label and follow the instructions exactly.
One test is to only use Pesticides if you can justify their use to those you love most in the world, and to your children's children.

LAST WORD

Help others to take a responsible approach to pest prevention and control; and pat yourself on the back for acting responsibly.

Prepared by Dr. Stuart B. Hill,
Dept. of Entomology and Ecological Agriculture Projects,
MacDonald College of McGill University
Ste-Anne de Bellevue, Quebec H9X IC0
(514) 398-7771

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Ecological Agriculture Projects, McGill University (Macdonald Campus)
Ste-Anne-de-Bellevue, QC, H9X 3V9 Canada
Telephone: (514)-398-7771
Fax: (514)-398-7621

Email: eapinfo@macdonald.mcgill.ca

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