Now that Spring is upon us and we are just about caught up in the Soil Lab, many of you and us have been working on our gardens. Regardless of what you are planting, there is a persistent issue that reduces growth and yields, pests. There are a few beds surrounding our lab that we maintain to make dropping off soil samples a little more pleasant (the Depot Campus where the Soil Lab is located is haunted by the way). This spring we had a Master Gardener, Rolland, working with us, and he really helped spruce up the beds.
Soil Lab. J.Croze
Soil Lab. J.Croze
While working on the beds, Dawn and Rolland has noticed that a few of their recently planted Asters, Dusty Millers, and Black Eyed Susans had all but been pretty much destroyed. The leaves and steams had all been chomped on by what we believe to be a hungry rabbit. We also constantly see chipmunks running around, and the occasional deer droppings.
B.E.S. J.Croze
B.E.S. J.Croze
Dusty Miller. J.Croze
M.B. Aster. J.Croze
Perp. J.Croze
Everyone has their own way of dealing with pests, some more humane than others. We decided to try out a Deer and Rabbit repellent called Liquid Fence. This is a humane spray derived from putrefied eggs; I would not recommend spraying this on any plants you were planning on eating! Hopefully this helps.
Liquid Fence from Mansfield Supply Co. J.Croze
For those of you with your own pest problems, the UConn Home and Garden Center provides numerous facts sheets for dealing with an array of insects and vertebrate pests. Those can be found if you follow this link: http://www.ladybug.uconn.edu/FactSheets/index.php and click on the topic concerning to your needs. If you cannot find what you are looking for through the Home and Garden Center, the Department of Plant Science and Landscape Architecture offers the Connecticut Integrated Pest Management Program. The IPM is a sustainable approach based off different eco-system derived strategies for helping with long-term pest management. The IPM can help you construct a pest management program that caters to your specific situation. There is an array of different program areas (fruit, vegetables, turf, greenhouse, etc…) and resources including publications and webinars. More information on the Connecticut Integrated Pest Management Program can be found here: http://ipm.uconn.edu/root/introduction.php. Happy Gardening!
-J.Croze
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