7 Flower Garden Pests You Shouldn't Ignore (2023)

FAQs

What is eating my flowers in the garden? ›

Caterpillars, cutworms, slugs, the potato beetle (which eats more than potatoes), the Mexican bean beetle, flea beetles, the Japanese beetle, and the tarnished plant bug. Each of those is capable of doing some real intensive damage to most your garden plants.

Rabbits, Voles, Woodchucks, Deer, Chipmunks, Squirrels. All eat leaves or fruits of plants in vegetable gardens. Symptoms include: Large parts of the plant are chewed off.

LADYBUGS

Know them: Ladybugs are the most notorious predatory insects around. They're famous for eating aphids, but most gardeners only recognize them as adults. While the alligator-like larva may be less cute, they are even more voracious.

The three most difficult pests to exterminate are:

Termites. Bed Bugs. Cockroaches.

Beetles and Budworms

Populations are now found in California – though the state is doing everything it can to keep them out – and Oregon. During the day, they eat flower petals as “skeletonizers,” which are insects that feed on tissue between veins while leaving the veins intact.

Insects Causing Damage by Piercing-sucking. Perhaps most damaging although not as apparent, are insects and insect-relatives that suck plant juices. Leafhoppers, thrips, aphids, plant bugs and mites are among the most common. Insects with piercing-sucking mouthparts do not chew plant tissue.

Oil Spray: Mix 1 cup of vegetable oil with 1 tablespoon of mild liquid soap. Add 2-8 teaspoons of this mixture to 1 quart of water and spray your plants as above. The oil in this spray smothers the insects so it is effective on aphids, thrips, mites, and scale.

Common sucking insects include aphids, squash bugs, and spider mites. Spray your plants diligently with insecticide, as sucking insects can breed so rapidly a single application often isn't enough. If your plant is strong enough, a good blast with a hose can work well to physically knock them away.

Leaf holes from slugs and snails are common in many types of plants, including basil, hosta, hibiscus, cabbage, cucumbers, lettuce, tomatoes and peppers. These pests do most of their damage at night. A nighttime stroll with a flashlight will help confirm your hunch is right.

How do I identify pests in my garden? ›

Holes in leaves, small grubs around the roots of container plants, speckled foliage and skeletonized leaves are just a few signs of garden pests. The best offense is a good defense. Check your plants often and act as soon as you spot a problem.

Soap and water:

Apply with a spray bottle directly on aphids and the affected parts of the plant, making sure to soak the undersides of leaves where eggs and larvae like to hide. The soap dissolves the protective outer layer of aphids and other soft-bodied insects, eventually killing them.

They have sucking mouthparts and feed exclusively on plant sap. Aphids feed on stems, leaves, and even roots!

Predators (which may consume all or parts of aphids) include green and brown lacewings, lady beetles, hover flies, midges, bigeyed bugs, damsel bugs, soldier beetles, and blister beetles. In many cases, both adults and larvae (or nymphs) feed on aphids.

They buzz around you head, bite you, and leave behind painful, itchy bites. Arguably, mosquitos are internationally considered the most annoying pests ever.

1) Mosquito's: Itchy bites, annoying buzzing sounds, and they carry diseases. 2) Fleas: Tough to handle infestations, itchy bites on pets and people. 3) Midge/Sand Fly: Painful bites, and they attack in groups. 4) Common House Flies: Hang around our food, loud buzzing, nasty habits, and they carry disease.

Bugs, including mosquitoes, ticks, fleas, and flies, can spread diseases such as malaria, yellow fever, Zika, dengue, chikungunya, and Lyme.

The most deadly animal in the world is the mosquito. It might seem impossible that something so miniscule can kill so many people, but it's true. According to the World Health Organization, mosquito bites result in the deaths of more than 1 million people every year.

What is chewing holes in my flowers? ›

Holes From Sucking Insects

Rasping-sucking pests, such as thrips, scrape leaf surfaces and suck plant juices from the oozing holes. Sucking insects strike many plant types, from flowers and grasses to roses, hydrangeas, cabbage, eggplant, tomatoes and kale. Their damage happens day and night.

The most common pests of foliage and flowering plants are spider mites, mealy bugs, fungus gnats, whitefly and aphids.

Start by rinsing your plant thoroughly with a sink sprayer, shower, or hose. This will get rid of the majority of adult aphids present on your plant. Then, spray regularly with an insecticidal soap or neem oil. You can also sprinkle systemic granules into the affected planters.

Other Plants that Deter Bugs

Mint: Similar to lavender, many insects don't like the smell of mint. Lemongrass: Citronella is a common oil found in many mosquito repelling candles and waxes, however, lemongrass naturally produces it. Rosemary: Rosemary will protect vegetable gardens, in particular, from an infestation.

Aphids. These are the tiny pear-shaped insects that you've probably seen outside in the vegetable plot. They can find their way onto indoor plants, too, and like to cluster around new leaves and flower buds. They suck the sap from the plant and excrete a sticky substance called honeydew.

To get rid of them, you can try placing upside-down citrus skins around your plant to trap them. Copper wire or tape around the rim of your pot will also keep them away.. If all else fails, netting around your plants will stop the slugs in their tracks.

Though vinegar can be fatal to many common plants, others, like rhododendrons, hydrangeas and gardenias, thrive on acidity which makes a bit of vinegar the best pick-me-up. Combine one cup of plain white vinegar with a gallon of water and use the next time you water these plants to see some amazing results.

Acetic acid makes vinegar an excellent tool for pest control, repelling some of the most common backyard nuisances and even killing weaker insects. It's most effective against ants, spiders, and mosquitos. You can keep spiders from entering your home by spraying vinegar around your property's perimeter and entryways.

Mix 1 part oil of lemon eucalyptus or lavender essential oil with 10 parts witch hazel in the bottle. (For each drop of oil, use 10 drops of witch hazel.) Shake gently to mix. Spray to apply.

There are a handful of plants which are believed to be a natural repellent for slugs. What you need: Slug repelling plants “ Living Green suggest that wormwood, rue, fennel, anise, and rosemary are the best slug repelling plants.

What is digging holes in my flower bed at night? ›

Rodents like squirrels, rats, mice, and guinea pigs are possible animals digging up your plants at night. They are invading your garden to get some food, shelter, and water. It's simple to figure out whether they're the ones digging up your plants.

In addition, at night you may not be able to see dangerous, spiders, bugs, or snakes that make their home in trees. In addition, at night it is difficult to identify dangerous plants (e.g. poison ivy, poison oak, stinging nettle, etc.).

Don't pluck that flower at night for the plant might be sleeping after a long day in the sun, suggests new research that measured the changes in the shape of plants during the day and night cycle.

You might often hear scratching on the walls, gnawing, squeaking, or scurrying. Larger bugs might also be heard if you listen closely. Holes and gnaw marks: Small holes in the walls and floors, or holes in or around the property are a giveaway of a possible infestation.

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Lepidopterous fruit borers are generally the most important pests affecting production. Other important species include various leaf- and flower-eating caterpillars and beetles, bark borers, scales, leaf mites, fruit-sucking bugs, fruit-piercing moths and fruit flies.

Stink Bugs

They feed on the stems and leaves of plants and the juices of fruits and vegetables including apples, peaches, berries, peppers, and beans. They can also feed on pecans, sorghum, and cotton and severely cut into all of these crop yields.

What insects destroy gardens? ›

They buzz around you head, bite you, and leave behind painful, itchy bites. Arguably, mosquitos are internationally considered the most annoying pests ever.

- Pests include insects, nematodes, mites, snails, slugs, etc. and vertebrates like rats, birds, etc. Depending upon the importance, pests may be agricultural forest, household, medical, aesthetic and veterinary pests.

Termites

Termites are number one for a reason – they can cause some serious damage. The National Pest Management Association states that termite infestations cause nearly $5 billion in damage in the U.S each year. Termites can cause damage rather quickly.

Oil Spray: Mix 1 cup of vegetable oil with 1 tablespoon of mild liquid soap. Add 2-8 teaspoons of this mixture to 1 quart of water and spray your plants as above. The oil in this spray smothers the insects so it is effective on aphids, thrips, mites, and scale.

The Academy of Natural Sciences of Drexel University

The Academy's Entomology Collection contains five specimens of the world's rarest and most endangered insect, the land lobster (Dryococelus australis).

What insect kills flowers? ›

Insects Causing Damage by Piercing-sucking. Perhaps most damaging although not as apparent, are insects and insect-relatives that suck plant juices. Leafhoppers, thrips, aphids, plant bugs and mites are among the most common. Insects with piercing-sucking mouthparts do not chew plant tissue.