Page Intro: Without pests there would be no need for biocontrols or chemicals. At first that might sound good, but there may be consequences. This on-going battle of the bugs and is natural and necessary. All part of the chain of life. On this page you will find another way to define pests, then learn more about this section.
What Are Pests?
Kids clamoring for attention, or candy, or their favorite television show, or simply for their way are sometimes considered, mostly by their own parents, pests. Large dogs whose tails wag back and forth in their show of unbridled excitement and joy like teenage bulls break-dancing in the china shop, are considered, mostly by everyone other than their owners and lovers of these creatures, pests. In other words pests enter our lives in many sizes, shapes and forms. But for growers, if the word pests is mentioned, an image is formed which is universally recognized: an image detailed by individual experiences, but most assuredly an image of an insect or mite (even if the thought of reckless kids or large dogs-and the occasional break-dancing teenage bull-romping through the Pick-Your-Own-Strawberries patch can be scary enough to many). This could be, specifically, depending on whose mind’s-eye is seeing this image, a swarm of locusts, a cloud of whiteflies, a pinging group of thrips or springtails, a compounded mass of aphids, a tented plant, or whatever other insectoid-apparition is deemed appropriate by the seer of such visions. Whatever it is, to the mind seeing it, it spells doom and is feared and loathed. It is a pest. [Intro]
This Section
Of course, in this section I will not delve into too many categories of pests (locusts, for example, won’t be covered). On this web site I will discuss in brief form some typical pests of which would be seen in the mind’s-eye of your average greenhouse grower or interiorscaper. The gardener and farmer will have some common-ground with these folks, as well, but I’m not going to attempt to cover it all. The list is too vast, and it is still growing as new pests and the subtle ways they touch our lives are being ever discovered and identified. On this web site I will address some major pest categories — I’ll even attempt to touch on the topic of plant diseases, which really is another pest. The information will be helpful to many people, but not to everyone. The insect pests and mites covered in this section will be limited mostly to those which I can also offer some non-chemical remedy. In other words if a biological or integrated solution is known for said pests, and often employed for such a use, I will try to cover them. If not, I’ll leave that to your local university.
As said, this section is meant to be brief and simple. I’m not trying to provide copious amounts of information here. It’s an overview and the headings/topics offered will vary some from bug-to-bug unlike the more rigid overviews provided in the Biocontrols section. The categories discussed in this section will be as follows: aphids, caterpillars, leafminers, scale insects including mealybugs, soil pests including some beetles and weevils, spider mites, thrips, whiteflies and, lastly, other pests which will include a few which don’t fit into one of the aforementioned categories but do deserve some discussion — a Dishonorable Mention, if you will. And like I said, I will mention plant diseases. [Intro]
