Step 1
Garden Insect Pest Prevention

Natural Balance

The basic and most important strategy behind OPM is pest prevention - preventing insect populations from getting out of control. Your goal should be a Natural Balance. Consider the whole garden: soil, water, plants, animals, and air when working towards a balanced insect population.

Four steps toward natural garden balance:

1. Create a healthy soil. Minimize insect damage by creating a healthy soil with compost and organic fertilizers. Most insects only attack unhealthy plants.
2. Practice Crop rotation. When you grow the same plant season after season in the same spot, the soil in that area loses fertility. Additionally, if you do not practice crop rotation, your crops may literally poison the soil, thus weakening the plant more making it more susceptible to insect attack.
3. Encourage beneficial insects. Encourage predator and parasitic insects into your garden. This can be done by intercropping plants that provide other sources of food, such as flowers for nectar or shelter for the beneficials to overwinter.
   
4. Clear debris. Keep the garden and orchard clear of debris.