What About Bugs In No Till Gardening

Question

I keep seeing articles about no-till gardening, your article of June 30 being the most recent. In that article, it said the method was begun in Connecticut, which has notably harsh winters. I have read an article elsewhere in which the writer had tried this method only to find that in the second year there were so many insects, her entire crop of vegetables was eaten before it could be picked. I live in zone 9, and we have winters that barely drop below freezing. Insects are a constant problem here, with mosquitos even in January. How can no-till gardening be used in a manner that doesn’t increase the insect population exponentially? I would love to use this method, but not if I’ll simultaneously create an ideal breeding ground for insects.

Answer 1

Tilling the soil can kill some bugs or larvae that live in the soil, but if you have a problem with grubs in the soil, you can use milky spore to reduce them. If you want to try the no-till method, go ahead and try it. The birds should eat a lot of bugs. You also can watch your vegetables for eggs on leaves and remove them.

Here is more:

https://www.gardeningknowhow.com/gardening-pros-cons/tilling-advantages-vs-no-till-advantages

https://www.gardeningknowhow.com/garden-how-to/info/ruth-stout-method-no-till-gardening

https://www.gardeningknowhow.com/special/urban/raised-beds-for-urban-settings-no-digging-required.htm

https://www.gardeningknowhow.com/plant-problems/pests/pesticides/what-is-milky-spore.htm