
Join us for a class on recognizing common injurious insects in your vegetable garden. Learn how to attract and encourage beneficial insects to assist you in fighting off these pests. We cover tips and tricks for limiting and even preventing damage from insect pests on your vegetable crops.
Online class offered by Extension Master Gardeners.
Speaker: Kirsten Conrad, Agriculture Natural Resource Extension Agent, Virginia Cooperative Extension
Zoom session, recorded June 26, 2020
Video of Presentation
Virginia Tech Cooperative Extension Resources
Home Grounds and Animals:
2023 Pest Management Guide
- Chapter 2: Home Vegetables
https://www.pubs.ext.vt.edu/content/dam/pubs_ext_vt_edu/456/456-018/ENTO-523B.pdf - Chapter 3: Home Fruit
https://www.pubs.ext.vt.edu/content/dam/pubs_ext_vt_edu/456/456-018/ENTO-523C.pdf - Chapter 4: Home ornamentals
https://www.pubs.ext.vt.edu/content/dam/pubs_ext_vt_edu/456/456-018/ENTO-523D.pdf - Chapter 5: Home Lawn Care
https://www.pubs.ext.vt.edu/content/dam/pubs_ext_vt_edu/456/456-018/ENTO-523E.pdf - Chapter 6: Nuisance Insects of the House and Yard
https://www.pubs.ext.vt.edu/content/dam/pubs_ext_vt_edu/456/456-018/ENTO-523F.pdf - Chapter 8: Conflicts with Vertebrates
https://www.pubs.ext.vt.edu/content/dam/pubs_ext_vt_edu/456/456-018/ENTO-523H.pdf
Virginia Tech’s comprehensive collection of Resources for Home Vegetable Gardening
https://ext.vt.edu/lawn-garden/home-vegetables.html
- Crop Specific Guides
- Extending your growing season
- Gardening With Youth
- Growing fruit
- Organic Insect Controls in the Home Vegetable Garden
- Other ideas for home food gardeners
- Planning your garden and getting started
- Preparing garden beds
- Processing & enjoying your crops
- Small space gardening
- Troubleshooting plant problems
- When and how to plant your crops
Additional References
ATTRA – Sustainable Agriculture
Biorationals: Ecological Pest Management Database
https://attra.ncat.org/attra-pub/biorationals/
What are biorationals? Although there is no universally accepted definition, in the context of this database, “biorational” refers to pesticides in one of the following categories:
- microbial pesticides: formulations of viruses, bacteria, fungi, or nematodes that have low non-target impacts;
- pesticides derived from plants that have low non-target impacts and degrade into non-toxic components; and/or
- various new types of pesticides, such as particle film barriers, pheromones, and compounds such as Spinosad, that have low non-target impacts and degrade into non-toxic components.
Oregon State University & EPA
National Pesticide Information Center
http://npic.orst.edu/
NPIC provides objective, science-based information about pesticides and pesticide-related topics to enable people to make informed decisions.
Organic Materials Review Institute (OMRI)
- OMRI Products List, Crop Fertilizers, Soil Amendments
- Search by crop, crop pest, or product name
Photos and Fact Sheets
- Connecticut Agricultural Experiment Station
Plant Pest Handbook – A Guide
A guide to insects, diseases, and other disorders affecting plants
https://portal.ct.gov/CAES/Publications/Publications/Plant-Pest-Handbook–A-Guide - Insect Diagnostic Lab at Cornell University
Insect Diagnostic Lab Factsheets
http://idl.entomology.cornell.edu/factsheets/ - Purdue University Extension: Entomology
Vegetable Insects and their Management
https://extension.entm.purdue.edu/veg/ - UMass Extension and the Center for Agriculture, Food and the Environment
UMass Extension Vegetable Program Fact Sheets
https://ag.umass.edu/vegetable/fact-sheets - University of Maryland Extension
https://extension.umd.edu/resources#!/category/4