Pests and Disease

SLIDESHOW: What’s bugging you about beneficial insects?

Q&A Bats benefit gardens
by Jennifer Pinkley

Q&A Aspirin cures common plant headaches
by Rebecca Brown

Q&A What are those bumps?
by Rosie Lerner

35 Pest and Disease Remedies
Turn to your pantry and medicine cabinet for simple solutions to common garden problems by Sharon Lovejoy

A Practical Program for Combatting Deer
Mixed tactics work best by Brad Roeller

Q&A Removing invasive garlic mustard
by Jody Mills

10 Ways to Keep Your Garden Healthy
Learn how to eliminate plant diseases by understanding and managing the conditions that cause them by A. R. Chase

Q&A Avoid tulip troubles
by Sydney Eddison

Is Roundup Right for You?
A close look at the herbicide's ingredients and application methods will help you decide by Ruth Foster

What Made My Good Plant Go Bad?
Use these seven questions to figure out what's wrong with any plant by Jim Chatfield

Hostas with Odd-Looking Leaves May Have a New Virus
The best protection against HVX is to buy healthy plants by Bonnie Blanchette

Q&A Milky-white foam on stems and leaves
by Charles W.G. Smith

Friendly Ways to Battle Garden Pests
Beneficial insects are an environmentally sound alternative to chemicals by Jaret Daniels

VIDEO Releasing Beneficial Insects in Your Garden
Control garden pests biologically with "natural enemies" by Jaret Daniels

Lawn Talk: Springtime blotchiness may be a symptom of fungal disease
by John C. Fech

Q&A Dealing with hollyhock rust
by Jim Chatfield

Getting to Know the Enemy
Observe the yearly patterns of deer and target your controls accordingly by John Van Etten

Control Pests and Diseases Safely with Neem
A natural, nontoxic spray can keep your garden healthy by Ann Lovejoy

Bats Are a Gardener's Best Friend
Bats may look scary, but they help the gardener in many ways. Here's how to attract them to your yard. by Dennis Ferraro

Q&A Lyme disease update
by David L. Weld

Q&A Addressing powdery mildew on phlox
by Richard Hawke

Japanese knotweed
by Chris Mattrick

READER'S TIP
Keep lounging dogs out of beds
by Rob Wotzak

What's Wrong with That Tree?
Cracks and splits, mushrooms, hollows, tilting trunks, and dead wood are all signs that a mature specimen may be in trouble by Wayne Cahilly

READER'S TIP
Homemade deer repellent
by Stephen R. Grant

Q&A Mysterious pest in pots
by Leanne Pundt

READER'S TIP
Pet hair deters chipmunks
by Suzanne Brownlow

Brewing Compost Tea
Tap your compost pile to make a potion that both fertilizes and prevents disease by Elaine Ingham

Deer-Proof Electric Fence
Just a bit shocking, this simple fence can keep deer from devouring your vegetables by Paul D. Curtis

Q&A Dealing with chipmunks

Q&A Trouble with bulb pest
by Becky Heath

Attracting Beneficial Insects
To lure good bugs to your garden, first get to know the players, then give them the right habitat by Joe Queirolo

Q&A Gardener’s tendinitis
by Barbara Ashmun

Q&A Preventing weeds from bird seed
by Scott Aker

Q&A Allergy-free gardening
by Diana W. Morgan

Q&A Infected dogwoods
by Craig R. Hibben

Put the Pinch on Pests
These organic techniques stop snacking bugs by Rhonda Hart

Q&A Star of Bethlehem is a weed
by Doris Taylor

Invasive Plants
These ornamental plants may look nice growing wild, but they’re wreaking havoc on our environment by Todd Meier

Coping with Powdery Mildew
We can't alter the weather that favors this unsightly white fungus, but we can prevent or slow its spread by Pam Baggett

Q&A Gardening and Lyme disease
by David L. Weld

Q&A Spot treat poison ivy
by Deborah Brown

Q&A A two-pronged attack for Bermuda grass
by David Nagel

Q&A Repel water-garden raiders
by William Quarles

Q&A How to deal with dodder
by Cathy E. Clary

Q&A Waging war on fire ants
by Dorothy Pashley Prowell

Q&A Burrowing beasts are voles, not moles
by Tanya Drlik

Q&A Chicken wire keeps squirrels from eating tulip bulbs
by William Quarles

Q&A What are daddy longleg spiders doing in the garden?
by Maxcy Nolan

Q&A Killing kudzu
by Walter Skroch

Q&A Repelling an ant invasion
by Eddie Dunbar

READER'S TIP
Bug-repellent hat
by Kathleen Nelson

READER'S TIP
Bread-bag mittens
by Kay Packard

READER'S TIP
Nets keep bunnies at bay
by Dorris Olson

READER'S TIP
Gravel protects bulbs from voles
by Brent Heath

READER'S TIP
Traps for whiteflies
by Paul E. Reifeiss

READER'S TIP
A squirrel-proof bird feeder
by Caryl M. Kerber

READER'S TIP
Deter rodents with daffodils
by Larry Loman

Ants Aren't Your Enemy
If you think these little insects are pests, think again by Steven N. Handel and Christina M. K. Kauzinger

VIDEO Control Spider Mites with Beneficial Mites
Put the chemicals down and pick up some mite eggs

VIDEO Dealing with Thrips Damage
See how you can bring a plant back from the brink of thrips demise

Get Rid of Fungus Gnats
You don't have to cohabitate with these tiny pests by Brandi Spade

VIDEO How to Remove Dead and Diseased Wood
by Lee Reich

Q&A: Keeping Water Gardens Mosquito-Free
by John Bueglas

Q&A: Removing Garlic Mustard
Find out how to deal with this invasive and prolific weed

VIDEO Ridding Your Garden of Slugs and Snails
A non-toxic solution for a most destructive pest by Andrew Schulman

VIDEO The Helpful Green Lacewing
Steven Ash shows you how to use green lacewings to your garden's advantage.

VIDEO The Shigo Pruning Technique
Steven Ash demonstrates this Integrated Pest Management pruning cut.

VIDEO What Deer Damage Looks Like
Shrubs and trees may look like they've been groomed with a canopy but the leaves and branches have actually been eaten away by John Van Etten

Winning the Slug Wars
Sometimes these slimy creatures force gardeners into action