There are many matters regarding your garden that landscapers can advise and guide you on, from the initial meeting you have with them through the design and planning stages, the construction, all the way through to your completed landscaped garden.
However, even after that point, your landscapers can be of invaluable assistance to you, specifically concerning your garden’s care and maintenance.
Like anything worth having, it takes some effort if you want your garden to thrive and look as great months and years from now as it did the day it was completed. One specific within garden care and maintenance is preventing bugs and pests, given the harm and damage they can inflict on many of the plants that grow in your garden. With that in mind, here are ten awesome tips for deterring garden pests and bugs.
Remove Standing Water: Standing water can be a breeding place for some bugs, such as mosquitoes, and even if not breeding, lots of bugs will be attracted to it. For these reasons, you should ensure any standing water in your garden is removed, such as rain-filled buckets and clogged drains.
Add Bird Feeders: What better way to dispel bugs than to invite those animals that regard them as food into your garden? As birds eat many bugs and insects, hanging bird feeders in your garden makes sense to attract them. However, there is a caveat…
Avoid Loose Birdseed: The caveat about adding bird feeders to your garden is to ensure that you remove spilled birdseed as quickly as possible. If not, you might find that mice and rats see it as an easy food source.
Swap Incandescent Bulbs For LED Bulbs: Insects are attracted to the light spectrum given off by incandescent lamps, which you will know if you have ever seen a moth flapping its wings frantically around your ceiling light. However, the spectrum of light from LED bulbs is known to have less appeal to most insects and bugs.
Burn Citronella Candles: The scent given off by citronella candles is something insects are not keen on, so why not use this fact to dispel them? Besides, candles in a landscaped garden add to the ambience and aesthetics, especially after sunset.
Regularly Mow Your Lawn: Where your garden is overgrown, you will find bugs and pests, including the long grass of your lawn, if you don’t mow it regularly. Short grass has little appeal to bugs and rodents, who presumably will look elsewhere for a messy garden.
Ensure All Rubbish Containers Are Tightly Closed: This applies whether you have a garden or not, whereby all rubbish receptacles, including your recycling container, must be kept tightly closed at all times. Otherwise, those pesky mice and rats will visit your garden and raid your bins for food.
Hang Pest And Bug Zappers Around Your Garden: Despite some sceptics dismissing them, most people who have used bug zappers have found them effective. Simply hang one or more on your patio, porch, or from tree branches.
Add Bug Repellent Plants: Mother Nature, in her infinite wisdom, has seen fit to create plants that do a great job of repelling many pests and bugs. This is due mainly to their scent, with examples such as marigolds, lavender, rosemary, and mint.
Use Bug Sprays When Suitable: We are not huge fans of pesticides and sprays, but they can be useful in limited circumstances. We mean whenever you have guests or plan a barbecue, you might wish to spray the area to repel unwanted gate crashers in the form of bugs and insects.
