Protecting your flowers from bugs

There’s nothing more beautiful than a garden, patio, or windowsill decorated with gorgeous flowering plants. Whether you have a spacious garden filled with luscious plants or a few house plants decorating your home, there’s no denying the harm that bugs can cause. Some bugs devour a plant within a few days or weeks while others take their time and make the plant their home while they slowly feed on it. Either way, its never good news for you or your plants! Prevention is the best solution to this problem. Even if you don’t keep all harmful bugs away at all times, you can at least minimize the damage.

The first thing you need to remember is that plants are similar to humans. When they are strong and healthy, they are that much more likely to withstand the onslaught of a few bugs. If, on the other hand, the plant is not doing too great, bugs will make very short work of it! So, keep your plants healthy with proper watering and add fertilizer as needed.

You can also help make the surrounding soil less appealing to bugs by adding natural sharp objects like crushed eggshells. For us, it may not sound like such a big deal but, for crawling bugs, making their way through a sharp eggshell minefield is enough to put them off that particular plant or flower.

Specialised coverings can also be used to keep bugs out without sacrificing light or air movement. These are ideal for keeping insects like caterpillars and flying insects out. You can also make your own insect repellent spray. It’s a good idea to use natural products and look for a spray that will work for all or at least most of your plants. If you need to use more than one type of spray, then make sure that you mark each spray bottle appropriately and store in a cool, dry place in between uses.

You can also set up traps in your garden to snag those pests before they reach your precious plants. There are various traps on the market that are designed for specific purposes. For example, one trap might attract snails and slugs while another trap attracts a different kind of bug. Traps are great if you have a specific problem with a specific kind of bug.

You can also do some herb planting. Just as certain bugs are attracted to certain plants, so too are they repelled by certain plants and herbs. By planting the right herb or plant in between your flowers, you can naturally keep bugs at bay without using chemicals or upsetting nature’s delicate balance. For houseplants, you could place a potted herb beside your plants to keep bugs away.