Dealing with Pests
One of the banes of growing your own are the pests that want to eat your food before you do. Below will be a number of invertebrates, mollusks and vertebrates that quite like you growing fruit and veg but don't share well.
Depending where you growing location is will affect what 'friends' might pay you a visit. Deer will eat plants in farm fields and allotments but probably won't bother your 7th floor balcony, whereas some pests could also be helpful to you - really!
Ants
Ants will not feature on many how-to blogs or TikTok videos but they can be an asset or a hindrance. In the soil ants are typically wonderful architects, creating tunnels that carry air and moisture that help soil structure. Some ants can eat plants such as leaf cutters or fire ants, should you have any in your country/region.
Ants can be an issue in pots as they can be well concealed even under small pots the first signs can be wilting plants especially leafy veg. However, on bigger plants ants can transport insects like aphids to the tips so they can feed on the sap. In turn the ants collect the sap/substance they produce. The ants will also protect aphids or black fly from predatory insects so any issue unchecked will become more harmful to a plant. Overall, in the soil there's not much of an issue but keep an eye on pots, shrubs and hedging plants. From my experience in the UK, red ants prefer sandy soil and small pots, black ants prefer regular soil and larger containers.
Aphids
Aphids feed on the sap of new plant growth, typically on softer plants such as lettuces, tomatoes, squashes and many other veg. In great numbers or over time, the plants will start to wilt and growth will be stunted resulting in a poor or ruined harvest. You may also see other types such as blackfly (also known as black aphid/black bean aphid/cherry blackfly). Their allay is the ant but predatory insects feed on aphids as they are near the bottom of the insect food chain.
Insects such as ladybirds, lacewings, soldier beetles, some midge's as well as small spiders will eat aphids. Planting flowers can be a good way to attract some of these predators.
Image credit: horror by numbers Unsplash
Caterpillars
These hungry caterpillars are the larvae of butterflies and moths. The ones to look out for with food plants are the cabbage moth (greenish-brown), cabbage white (green and a yellow stripe - but not useful like a John Deere), cinnabar (black/yellow stripes). The crucifer and diamond backs have caterpillars that are green and ribbed. These pests consume leaves, which affects the plant's ability to photosynthesis or takes harvests of plants such as cabbages, chard and dandelion leaves out of use.
Beetles, birds, frogs, toads and paper wasps eat caterpillars. In some culture so do people but if you want to do this please consult an expert before you do. If a caterpillar consumes toxic plants it will likely be toxic to you.
Cutworms
Cutworms are actually moth caterpillars, however, these are separated as they tend to live in soil and rather than consume the leaves they feed on the roots and stems of plants. Being soil bound they will often be brown and cream or green. These caterpillars are often smaller at no more than 4 cm (1.7 inches) and belong to the heart and dart, turnip and underwing moths.
Birds, ground dwelling beetles and ladybirds can limit the numbers of these veggie vampires. Despite the names above they can also feed on lettuce roots and stems, all root veg and potatoes.
Deer and rabbits/ hares
Deer are majestic animals and make great photogenic subjects but they will eat your veg. They love to eat the leaves stems and flowers of plants including beets and other root veg tops, brassicas, dahlias, grape vines, hibiscus, legumes, lettuce and salad leaves, roses and spinach.
I do appreciate that in many countries deer, rabbits and hares have hunting seasons but this is focusing on nonlethal fixes. Like many mammals they do not like chili. Birds don't mind it but mammals can't stand it. Blend a chili in water and strain through a sieve into a spray bottle. If you are picking salad leaves to eat straight away, use a cage or netting. Deer like rose flowers and the thorns don't seem to bother them. Rabbits do not seem to like alliums, tomatoes and chili plants. I've also heard that they avoid the smell of blood and bone meal should you be using that type of fertilizer.
Leaf miners
Rather than butterflies and moths, the developed leaf miners are very small black and yellow flies only a few mm in length. The eggs are laid on the underside of leaves and the maggots burrow into the foliage, leaving behind a trail of swirls or tunnels in plant leaves. Just like cutworms, there are a few different types and the maggots are either dark brown or a pale shade of either green or yellow.
These larvae can feed on the leaves of blackberry and raspberry plants, edible flowers, lettuces, legumes and nightshade vegetable leaves. Due to the tiny size of the flies it is hard to keep them away. The methods that could work are a fine mesh netting or fly traps.
People who keep chickens can use rosemary to ward off flies so companion planting with strong smelling or antibacterial plants such as garlic, oregano and rosemary may work.
Image credit: James Wainscoat Unsplash
Mice and rats
These can be an issue especially on a farm, allotments, city centers and gardens nearby anyone who keeps rabbits or birds outside. Field mice, rats, shrews, voles and to a lesser extend squirrels will eat seeds, bulbs, tubers, fruit and nuts. In winter they will be drawn from nearby fields or a lack of food. Mice and rats may also burrow into compost bins or piles to stay warm.
Mice and rat droppings are toxic and may carry diseases so although many people may say support them, they do breed quickly and can over run an area. I have found that rodents do not like peppermint, although a spray/oil in water works better than just keeping plants. If you live visit a bird or animal sanctuary they may be willing to give you owl or bird of prey feathers and laying them around could make the rodents think twice about your plot. Lastly, if you see signs of mice and rats, you can do maintenance, move things around, disturb a burrow, build fencing with some wire underground to stop burrowing into your area and make noise, whistle, put on the radio, stomp around (or just bring your children as mine are a noise machine!), all which should deter them.
If you want to attract owls and other birds of prey, tall posts, owl boxes and keeping the growing area clear of debris so they can see any rodents about would help.
Pigeons
These birds eat young plant stems and leaves and although blackbirds may damage you plants, pigeons are very clunky trampling plants as they waddle around and their droppings are quite acidic and can harm vulnerable plants.
Many gardeners use netting, cloches and fruit cages to protect plants. You can also use CDs or other metallic objects that move easily in the wind. Pigeons and other birds may try their luck if you sow seeds direct outside so make sure you use covering or netting if birds are a problem. Pigeons, starlings and sparrows will all be interested in sown seeds so a covering is a good idea until seeds have germinated and become big enough.
If you already attract birds of prey due to a rodent issue, owls and falcons may make pigeons wary as they are natural predators along with foxes, cats (wild or domestic/farm cats) and potentially stoats.
Whitefly
Whitefly are attracted to brassica and nightshade plants and flowers in greenhouses, poly tunnels and warm spots. They may also be on houseplants. They suck the sap from plants, much like aphids and blackfly. The sap they excrete can turn mouldy. The quickest fix is spraying plants with soapy water, outside they have a few predators such as mites, beetles and very tiny parasitic wasps. You can also order predator insects should you have a fly problem.