Organic options

You hear it from more and more customers every day: “Which organic or natural options can control insects and diseases effectively?” They are intrigued by natural solutions, but they also want the same results that they get from synthetic options. Therein lies a problem — but also an opportunity. For gardeners to control pests successfully and organically, they have to be educated, persistent, use multiple methods and the correct products. As a garden care expert, you can help them at any step in their educational and buying processes, and, at the same time, increase sales and customer satisfaction.

First, there must be a clarification between “organic” and “natural” when it comes to pest control solutions. Products labeled as “OMRI listed” are certified by the Organic Material Review Institute to comply with established organic standards. Only products meeting these standards can be called organic. Some natural alternatives (that occur in nature but are not derived from plants or animals), such as mineral sulfur, are not truly “organic” and cannot be labeled as OMRI listed, but are often used by organic gardeners.

Here are some tips you can give your customers to help them successfully control pests organically or naturally. You can also use these tips to cross-merchandise products, create displays and establish yourselves as experts in alternative pest controls.

Have a keen eye and act quickly. The more time gardeners spend in the garden, examining plants for the first sign of a problem, the more likely it is that they will be able to control pests with organic or natural measures. These measures work best when started early, before insects or disease become firmly established. This is especially true for natural and organic sprays, which usually have to be applied more frequently than synthetic alternatives. For example, organic fungicides like neem oil extract and the bacteria Bacillus subtilis work much better when applied early to prevent diseases, such as black spot, than if they are applied when the diseases are fully established. They also may have to be used as often as every seven days to be effective.

Know the pests. Understanding pest lifecycles and knowing when to expect outbreaks is critical for control. You can help customers by providing alerts and proper control measures in “pest of the week” tweets, flyers and promotions. It is also important to tell customers about relationships between pests, such as the interactions between ants and aphids, and how some insects can result in secondary problems like sooty mold. Encourage customers to keep track of outbreaks and record them in garden notebooks.

Encourage and/or release beneficial insects. Teach your customers to recognize the “good guys” in the garden and promote plants that will help attract them to their gardens. Controlling insect pests successfully by releasing beneficials, such a predatory nematodes or lacewings, takes precise timing and viable products. While results of such releases may be mixed, there is no doubt that unleashing lady beetles or praying mantises is a lot of fun and a great biology lesson for kids.

Plant-resistant varieties. From disease-resistant rose varieties, to tomatoes resistant to nematodes and verticillium wilt, to sycamores that are less susceptible to anthracnose, the list of plants that can protect themselves is ever increasing. Use your local cooperative extension, web searches and plant suppliers to find out about the latest and greatest varieties and offer them to customers.

Handpick. Simple things like frequent handpicking of snails, grasshoppers or tomato hornworms can help reduce pest numbers.

Use barriers and traps. Floating row covers can prevent many pest problems in vegetable gardens. Other effective barriers include paper or plastic collars to block cutworms from reaching young seedlings, strips of copper to impede snails and bands of sticky material to keep ants out of plants. Trapping pests can be as simple as setting out pans of beer to catch snails, rolling newspapers to snare earwigs or hanging yellow sticky traps to reduce whiteflies. More sophisticated traps or lures can help monitor specific pests, such as coddling moth, and help time control measures.

Clean and rotate. Good sanitation and crop rotation can go a long way in preventing pest populations from exploding. Encourage gardeners to remove mummies (unpicked fruit) from fruiting plants and to compost (or dispose of) plant debris that could harbor overwintering insects or disease before they invade. Soil cultivation can also reduce overwintering pests, as can the rotation of annual plantings so they are never grown in the same place year after year.

Good cultural practices. Healthy plants are more able to withstand or overcome attacks from insects and diseases, so good cultural advice is always important. It also helps to educate customers that certain practices — especially improper watering and fertilizing — can make plants more susceptible to pests. For example, gardeners often do not realize that overhead watering can promote black spot on roses or that drought-stressed trees are more likely to be attacked by certain borers.

The right spray at the right time. The last decade has seen an increase in the quality and quantity of organic and natural pest controls on nursery and garden center shelves. Some products offer time-honored organic options like insecticidal soap and neem oil extract.

The more your customers know about organic and natural pest controls — how they work, how and when to use them — the more successful they will be. Remind customers that even though their products of choice are natural or organic, they are still pesticides and must be used according to the label instructions. Following the label ensures the safety of the user and pollinators, protects plants and will provide the best results.

Lance is the Bayer Advanced garden expert and author of Landscaping for Dummies.