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Different Types of Pests That Can Harm Your Plants

Learn about the tiny invaders that can cause minor to huge damages to your plants and make a note of how to stop them from getting in your garden.

Binita Kumari
Earwigs: A Pest
Earwigs: A Pest

It's practically hard to keep pests out of your lovely garden, but they can be stopped from attacking the plants. Insect pests can be classified into three categories:

  • Chewing insects

  • Boring, mining, and soil insects

  • Sucking insects

Pests are attracted to only a few plants. Different types of pests that physically harm plants can be easily identified. They eat plants and leave a sticky coating behind.

Here is a list of plants that can harm your plants:

Caterpillar

Caterpillars can eat and destroy plant buds, stems, and leaves of the plants. Their continued presence will make the plant weak and eventually kill it. Caterpillars are leaf-eating larvae of butterflies and moths that chew at the leaves and stems of plants, causing them to die. You can keep your plants safe by handpicking them one at a time and dropping them in soapy water.

Capsid Bugs

They usually target young leaves and smooth plant branches (stems). These insects can quickly ruin the overall appearance of the plant, which can be avoided by spraying insecticide. They come in a variety of species and distort the appearance of the leaves. They drink the sap and leave a poisonous residue toxic to the plant.

Earwigs

Earwigs come in a variety of shapes and sizes, with forceps and pincers protruding from their abdomen. They aren't harmful, and they don't spread infections. Some species only eat plant matter, while others eat rotting plants, and just a handful are predatory.

Aphids

Their common name is plant lice. Greenfly, blackly, and whitefly are all soft-bodied insects. Aphids are drawn to soft sappy growth due to the use of fertilizers that encourage soft sappy development, where they may spread viral illness.

Ants

Ants eat the honeydew that aphids secrete and farm the aphids that make planting difficult for gardeners. They bury the roots, which kills the plants even more.

Eelworms

Eelworms harm a wide range of plants, preventing them from flowering. Infected plants should be burned in a container, followed by sterilization of the container. They target plants' leaves, stems, and roots, and they thrive in humid environments.

Slugs and Snails

Commonly found in most gardens, slugs and snails feed on living plants. They can be handpicked and removed from the garden. You can also put broken eggshells or grit around the garden to protect it from these pests.

Vine Weevil

They eat plant leaves, leaving holes or an appearance of being eaten. These insects chew at the leaves at a breakneck speed. Vine Weevil attack can be reduced by maintaining proper cleanliness and removing plant waste.

Whitefly

Honeydew is secreted by these little insects on leaves, stems, and fruits, resulting in sooty, grey-colored molds. Plants may become weak and stunted if they are badly attacked.

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