ANy alternatives instead of using pesticides?

Question

instead of using harmful pesticides, are theere any otherrr things we can use?

Answer 1

There are lots of safe alternatives, depending on the pest.

For powdery mildew, mix a little bit of baking soda and ONE drop dish detergent into a spray bottle of water, and liberally spray the leaves (preventative, doesn't work as well after the leaves are infected.)

For aphids, spider mites and scale, mix a spray bottle with 1/4 rubbing alcohol and 3/4 water. You can also put rubbing alcohol on a cotton ball and wipe the bugs, which die immediately (the alcohol dried them out I think). If you use fuller strength though, be careful about burning, so it's better to rinse the leaves with water afterwards.

Another answer mentioned using various plants nearby which deter bugs, that is another great option. I have also seen good results from applying compost tea to the leaves of plants, which increases their natural defenses. It's harder to get ahold of though, unless you make it yourself.

Answer 2

Look to what organic producers are doing. Cultivating will reduce weeds between the rows, however to get them within the row it must be done by hand. Natural sprays are available for certain things. For example vinegar can supress certain weeds. Also there are bacterial sprays available for certain insects. BT is an example here, it is a bacteria that is toxic to many insects. This is the same bacteria that BT crops have been engineered to produce as defense against insect pests. Although technically here the vinegar or bacteria is used as a pesticide. People have developed propane based flamers to suppress both weeds and insects. These are not all that common but they do exist, and can be effective. Releasing parasites to take care of insect problems. Planting varieties that have more resistance to certain fungi and other diseases can help quite a bit. There are also varieties of some crops that show more resistance to certain insects. An example here is alfalfa varieties with hairy stems that are less appealing to leafhoppers. In certain cases with very high value crops an attempt to keep them in a safe environment inside a greenhouse can be used. However this can only be done on a small scale and with the most valuable crops. Not exactly profitable on corn, soy, wheat, etc. Crop rotation can throw off insect cycles and often does throw off disease cycles. There are also some way to do this that are not used by the organic people. Such as I mentioned above use of BT producing crops, there are other biotech develpoments out there that can either reduce the usage of pesticides or allow for a safer one to be used. Some seed treatments can offer some protection against various pests and fungi also, technically these would probably be considered a pesticide but the usage would be decreased. Also one that many people overlook is for some insects a good rainfall can suppress them, irrigation accomplished the same. This works great with leafhoppers and some aphids, as well as likely a few other insect pests.

Answer 3

Yes, it depends on the pest. There are bacteria that can be sprayed, or nurseries will sell organic nematodes (micrscopic worms) that can be mixed with soil and kill various pests such as fungus gnats (which I've used them for).

Answer 4

Companion planting: Grow basil, oregano, and garlic near your tomatoes for instance. And use crushed egg shells to deter slugs, unless you want to leave little pans of beer out for them to drown in.

Answer 5

depends on what you are trying to kill..
a quality nursery should have answers...or a quick Yahoo search on less harmful or all natural weed killers would do