Brooklyn's Progress
June 2003

A day doesn't go by without new organic products coming to market.  These products present the most obvious business end of organic growing.  Though much of organic farming has been professionalized, the principals that made these markets a reality can be practiced in your own backyard.  What goes unsaid is that your garden efforts are also part of the new business of organic gardening.
 
Every summer a battle rages in backyards all over Brooklyn.  Those of us fortunate enough to have a garden find ourselves besieged with aphids, caterpillars, slugs, snails, and countless other destructive pests.  We gaze forlornly on browning buds and leaves chewed ragged.

On the bright side, insects are essential for pollinating crops, decomposing dead plants and animals, manufacturing sealants and pigments, and providing luxury items such as silk and honey.  They are the primary source of food for hundreds of animal species the world over, as well as being interesting and deserving creatures in their own right.  But they still eat our tomatoes.

Reaching for the nearest can of pesticides is often not only unhealthy but counter-productive in achieving our end goals.  Many species such as aphids have short life cycles and produce large numbers of offspring, allowing the quick development of a resistant population.  The biggest problems come from broad spectrum chemicals that affect all of the insects in the garden, including predaceous species such as ladybugs and centipedes that would normally keep the pest population in check.  The result is a short period with few insects, followed by a population explosion of the most destructive ones.

The most labor intensive alternative to chemicals is crushing caterpillars and pinching plant bugs by hand.  Soapy water or a spray from a hose can be used to wash aphids from plant stalks, just be careful not to damage tender shoots with too powerful a spray.  A grapefruit rind provides a tempting but deadly meal for slugs and snails, and doesn't need to be replaced as often as cans of beer.

For those of us not inclined to have such direct contact with creepy crawlies, there is a wide range of organic, plant-based pesticides available that target specific pests and have little environmental impact.  Real Goods and Gardens Alive! are two reliable sources for such products, and both have print and on-line catalogs.

The best long-term solution for controlling garden pests is to create a welcoming environment for their natural predators.  Ladybugs, lacewings, mantids, wasps, beetles, centipedes, and pirate bugs are just a few of the many beneficial insects that will devour common garden pests.  These predators will need a few essentials to thrive: a perennial flower border to offer shelter, a variety of nectar producing flowers to provide food when prey is scarce, and an occasional spray from the hose.  Along with dozens of companies, Organica and 7th Generation sell beneficials if your local population needs a kick start. 
 
Whatever method you choose, please remember that the things that we do in our yards affect our neighbors, our businesses, our community, and the planet.  By employing natural controls, we can all continue to enjoy green lawns and colorful gardens for generations to come.  Who knows, maybe there's a business idea crawling among the green foliage and other backyard critters just waiting to bloom.

Alix Bowman is an Assistant Coordinator for Environmental Science at the Brooklyn Center for the Urban Environment.  Prior to her position at BCUE, she has been a teacher and naturalist in Louisiana, New Jersey, and upstate New York, and has spent many years working as an organic gardener. bowman@bcue.org

 By Alix Bowman