Don't Waste Your Money Buying Ladybugs for Natural Insect Control

3/11/2018

Ladybugs are a natural way to keep plant pests in check... sorta. There is an organic gardening push to purchase ladybugs and release them in your garden as a natural way to eliminate pests like aphids. There is a problem. When you release them, they fly away. They go many miles away because ladybugs naturally spread out so they don’t overcrowd one another's territory so there is enough food to survive.

Picture of ladybug eating aphids in new orleans

An alternative is green lacewings, but they can become a problem if their population grows too much. If you have to buy a helpful bug, get green lacewings. An okay solution if you are trying to do organic gardening is to make a ladybug friendly environment. They will come to you. Grow a large variety of plants. Let some aphids live. It will attract ladybugs to your garden. Use manual removal on your plants if things start to bug out too much.

If you are trying to grow an organic garden, the best advice is to grow plants that do the best in your environment. I know this sounds pretty simple, but a lot of people do not follow this advice. Trying to grow your favorite variety of tomato may taste the best to you, but will be near impossible to grow if it is swarmed by insects daily. Choose the easiest variety of what you want grown and you will be much more successful as an organic backyard farmer.

Give us a call if you have any questions about natural insect control for your garden.

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How to Start Your Sprinkler System in Spring - Baton Rouge Lawn Sprinklers

3/11/2018

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Once the temperature begins to warm up and there is no longer a chance of freezing temperatures, you can start up you sprinkler system. De-winterizing your irrigation system in spring is not that difficult. You will need at least a flat head screw driver and some pliers.

Picture of lawn sprinkler watering grass in baton rouge louisiana

Make sure your irrigation controller and clock are in the off position.
Locate your bronze back flow preventer and check that the test cock valves are perpendicular to the opening.
Find the main water shut-off for the irrigation system. Make sure the drain valve next to the irrigation shut off is closed.
Slowly turn the main irrigation supply line on. Listen. The water should stop flowing after a few seconds. If it doesn’t, go look outside for water spraying and turn off the valve next to it.
Next, go outside and slowly open the ball valve closest to the house. This should pressurize the back flow.
Slowly open the other ball valve on the back flow to a 45 degree angle. The irrigation main is pressurizing. This may take about 10 minutes, but it will stop filling at some point.
While this is happening, walk around and check for either spraying or pooling water. If you see any, you will need to shut off the water and fix the leak.
If there are no leaks, open the ball valve all the way.
Go to the irrigation controller and run through all the zones.
Check each zone for leaks and proper coverage.
Finally, program your controller.

You should use infrequent, deep watering cycles when programming your irrigation controller. This promotes better root development and lowers the chance of developing root rot. Allowing your yard a chance to dry out between watering periods also makes weeds less likely to propagate. Following this advice will get you greener and healthier grass that will perform better in the heat of summer.

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Don't Waste Your Money Buying Ladybugs for Natural Insect Control

How to Start Your Sprinkler System in Spring - Baton Rouge Lawn Sprinklers

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