There are many ways by which you can get rid of those pesky insects in your garden. But be careful which bugs you choose to kill because some of the bugs in your garden are more beneficial than detrimental to the success of your garden. Insects you want to kill include whiteflies, aphids, scale, mites, and thrips amongst others. Below are three easy and organic ways of eliminating those pesky insects in your garden!

Not surprisingly, water can be quite effective at removing insects from your plants. To do so, turn your hose nozzle to a fine spray and black the pests off the leaves. You must do this for both the top of the leaves and the undersides. How does this work? By knocking these insects off of the plants it allows for other beneficial insects to move in and keep the remaining populations in check! This is most efficient against whiteflies and aphids. 

If using water is not enough, try adding soap to the mix. The natural fatty acids in soap will dissolve the outer coating or shell of many insects and kill them.

Recipe: 1 teaspoon natural dish soap or liquid castile soap put into a one-quart spray bottle and top it off with water. 

Remember with this method you do not need to worry about knocking the bugs off of the plants; all you need to do is spray on insect-infested areas. 

This organic mixture has been shown to work effectively against those garden pests! 

You will need: 

• 2-3 garlic bulbs
• 6 large or 12 smaller hot chilli peppers (if unavailable try 1-2 tablespoons of hot chilli powder) 
• 1 tablespoon vegetable oil 
• 3 squirts of eco liquid detergent
• 7 cups water

Put all of the ingredients into a blender. Then strain through a coffee filter or similar. Pour the contents into a spray bottle and use. Store the rest in a well labelled jar. 

If there are still a few pests, then lower the water dilution rate. 

Are you struggling with fungal diseases on your plants?  Fight back with these easy remedies. 

This spray is useful for fighting black spot on roses and other fungal diseases you may find on your plants. It is also a good repellent against many insects. 

You will need:

• 1 teaspoon baking soda
• 1 teaspoon vegetable oil 
• 1 teaspoon natural dish soap or liquid castile soap
• 1 teaspoon vinegar

Dissolve the baking soda in one cup warm water. Fill a one-quart spray bottle with the ingredients and top off the bottle with water. Before spraying, remove the badly damaged leaves. 

You will want to spray once a week or after every rain. 

Diluted milk is one of the most effective synthetic fungicides for fighting powdery mildew on grapes, squash, and other plants. 

You will need: 

• 1/4 cup milk 
• 4 drops natural dish soap or liquid castile soap 

Mix both ingredients in a one-quart spray bottle and top it off with water. Then, spray the mixture lightly on all surfaces. You should repeat once every two weeks or after every rain. 

Make sure you pour out any leftovers and clean the spray bottle after each use because this mixture does not keep. 

Compost and manure tea are used to keep blight and other pathogens away from plants. 

First, you will fill a 115 litre trash can with water and let it sit for 24 hours. This will evaporate the additives. Rain water is best. Next, you will add 4 shovels of manure or compost and cover the trash can. Let it sit for 2-3 weeks, stirring once a day. Once the mixture is ready you will want to soak the area around plants and use a foliar spray. You do not want to use this method on seedlings as this may encourage damping-off diseases.