Sat 08 Oct 2005 Prince George Citizen You don't have to battle bugs with drugs by: Ron Wolczuk As you prepare to plant your plants in spring, one thing you can be sure of is there are at least a bazillion bugs (maybe even more) just waiting to sink their mouthparts into your flowers or vegetables, with neither respect nor regard for your wishes. Fortunately, there are many things we can do without pesticides that can bring the bug population down to tolerable levels. Caterpillars are about the easiest to deal with. They are big enough to pick off by hand, which is almost always more effective than spraying anyway. The toughest part of this method is getting oneself past the heebie-jeebies, which actually doesn't take very long. For some species, like the little green ones that devour your columbines almost before your very eyes, picking them off is the only effective treatment. They hatch only a few each day, making spraying a waste of time. More difficult, but better in the long run, is spotting egg masses and wiping them off. It takes a while to teach your eye to see them, especially in cases like the columbine caterpillar, which are laid singly, and only one or two on the underside of each leaf, somewhere around late April or early May. They are a tiny black speck, like a grain of pepper. Most egg masses will wipe off between thumb and forefinger with less pressure than it takes to bruise the leaf. Where cutworms are a problem, tin cans (14 oz size are big enough) are an effective preventive measure. Remove the bottom, sink it down so it is just barely showing, and plant inside it. The cutworms can't get through the metal and go elsewhere, hopefully after weeds. Separating vegetables, such as broccoli, cabbage, and cauliflower, which all attract the same bugs, will make it less likely that the whole works will be attacked at the same time. Some flowers are reputed to repel certain bugs, and while there is little or no reliable scientific research into the benefits, interspersing a few marigolds amongst your vegetables won't hurt. Plants which attract bugs are even more effective in some cases, as the bugs go to the attractor first, eating the plant you don't care about and allowing you to monitor just how many of the unwelcome visitors are around. For example, aphids like peppers much better than tomatoes, and a few planted in the area will keep them off the tomatoes, especially in a greenhouse. In rural areas, planting a row or two of cabbages between the forest and your vegetable garden can go along way to keeping the deer out of the rest of the garden. Slugs can also be controlled without pesticides. Containers of beer, shallow enough for the slugs to crawl into easily, are effective when replenished as needed. Flat objects, like a piece of 1x6, set out between the plants will provide the slugs with a handy place to hide from the summer heat. You can flick them off the board, or pick them from the ground using a plastic plant tag and dispose of them in a plastic bag. Some birds, such as many species of sparrows and finches, feed on seeds and bugs. You can attract these flying pest-controllers by planting flowers that attract them -- marigolds, cosmos, sunflowers and portulaca. Before the seeds are ready, bugs are on their menu, but to keep them around, you will need to let the flowers go to seed, and refrain from deadheading them. If you have any questions, you can call me at 552-8200, or on the internet at http://www.ddbotgarden.bc.ca/question.htm.