Garden Pest Identification Guide

Knowing your enemy is half the battle. This guide helps you identify common garden pests and choose the most effective organic control methods.

Sucking Insects

🐛 Aphids

Identification: Tiny (1/8"), soft-bodied insects in green, black, white, or pink. Found in clusters on new growth and undersides of leaves.

Damage: Curled, yellowing leaves; sticky honeydew; sooty mold

Control: Strong water spray, insecticidal soap, ladybugs, lacewings. Nasturtiums as trap crop.

🕷️ Spider Mites

Identification: Microscopic—look for fine webbing and stippled leaves. Shake leaf over white paper to see them.

Damage: Bronzed, stippled leaves; fine webbing; plant decline

Control: Water spray (they hate humidity), insecticidal soap, predatory mites. Avoid dusty conditions.

⚪ Whiteflies

Identification: Tiny white moth-like insects that fly up in a cloud when disturbed. Found on leaf undersides.

Damage: Yellowing leaves, honeydew, weakened plants

Control: Yellow sticky traps, insecticidal soap, reflective mulch, vacuum (yes, really!)

Chewing Insects

🐛 Tomato Hornworm

Identification: Large (3-4") green caterpillar with white V-marks and horn on rear. Masters of camouflage!

Damage: Rapid defoliation, fruit damage, droppings

Control: Hand-pick (early morning), Bt spray, leave parasitized ones (white cocoons)—those wasps are your friends!

🪲 Colorado Potato Beetle

Identification: Yellow/orange beetle with black stripes. Orange larvae with black spots.

Damage: Defoliated potato, tomato, eggplant

Control: Hand-pick, spinosad, straw mulch (confuses adults), row cover before beetles appear

🥒 Cucumber Beetle

Identification: Yellow beetle with black stripes OR spots. About ¼" long.

Damage: Chewed leaves/flowers, bacterial wilt transmission

Control: Row cover until flowering, trap crops (Blue Hubbard squash), kaolin clay spray

🔍 Scout Early and Often

Check plants daily, especially leaf undersides. Small populations are easy to control. Waiting until damage is obvious means harder battles.

Larger Pests

🐌 Slugs & Snails

Identification: Slime trails, irregular holes in leaves, active at night

Damage: Ragged holes in leaves, especially seedlings

Control: Beer traps, copper barriers, iron phosphate bait, egg shells, diatomaceous earth

🐰 Rabbits

Identification: Clean 45° cuts on stems, droppings

Damage: Young plants clipped at ground level

Control: Fencing (1" mesh, 2' high, buried 6"), dried blood, dog/cat presence

🦌 Deer

Identification: Torn foliage (no teeth on upper jaw), hoof prints

Damage: Can devastate entire gardens overnight

Control: 8' fencing, motion-activated sprinklers, repellent sprays (rotate types), deer-resistant plants

Prevention is Best

Rotate crops to break pest cycles
Remove debris that harbors pests
Encourage beneficial insects with flowers
Use row covers before pests arrive
Keep plants healthy—stressed plants attract pests
Diversify plantings to confuse pests

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