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. In severe cases, growth becomes distorted, leaves curl up, the plant weakens and can die.Natural predators, such as birds, earwigs, ladybirds, lacewings, hoverflies, ground beetles, spiders and parasitic wasps are a gardener's best allies. Some

, thus exposing the bugs to predators. But they're not all bad, as some capsid bugs feed on small pests.a wide range of plants, including chrysanthemums, dahlias, fuchsias, apples, beans and potatoesspring, summerMore common garden pestsLeaf miner fly

and can be collected in the morning. Encourage natural predators, such as spiders and garden birds, especially starlings. Use the biological control Steinernema feltiae, which should be applied while the ground is still moist and warm in late

. After a week they hatch into reddish-brown maggot-like grubs, and feed on the same parts of the plant as the parents. Possibly to deter predators or disguise themselves, the larvae cover themselves in their own wet, black excrement.Lily leaves

during the day making collection easy. Sink shallow cups of beer or milk in borders, setting them slightly above soil level - you don't want ground beetles falling in as they are a natural predator of slugs. Keep your garden tidy, slugs love to hide under

and air from reaching the leaves.Black or greyish-green mould spreads across sticky honeydew deposited on pepper plants by aphidsThere's no control for sooty mould, but you can control the aphids. Outside, natural predators such as birds and ladybirds

predators in the garden and they attack all manner of real pests including caterpillars, aphids and flies. They feed the chewed remains to their grubs back at the nest. The last five years have been really bad for wasps; either the hibernating queens have

Walking back from the Horniman Museum last week took me past a large oaktree growing just inside a front garden. The tree looks like an old pollardand must pre-date the early 20th century houses hereabouts. What caught myattention were all

of knowing that the elegant black and white birds they were mobbing were worth the effort of attack. Evolution works slowly, so surely there could not have been any innate image of a potential egg predator in their minds. I wonder what behaviour

The loose bark on old logs is one of the most important hibernating sites for all manner of insects. Here they can remain sheltered from predators, and also from their main enemies during winter: frost and damp. This week they will be sorely tested