By DIANE RELF

By DIANE RELF * Extension Consumer Horticulturist • Scout your home landscape for insect and plant pests. Learn to distinguish the good guys from the bad. jBefore you apply control measures, jbe sure you properly identify the >pest. - Educate yourself about the pest, Its life cycle, and feeding habits. Time your pesticide application to jthe most effective periods in the pest’s life cycle or population development.

; Timing of Control For

Common Garden Insects I Scale - On outside ornamentals, pse pesticides when scales are at the crawler stage daring the growing season or use dormant oil in winter. Z Whitefly - Whiteflies are susceptible to most control measures in the adult and nymph stage. Thoroughly coat the underside of the leaves with a recommended insecticide where the whitefly eggs and Jivmphs are usually most prevalent. Since whiteflies produce many broods each year, repeat according to the pesticide label as eggs hatch, tin four to 12 days) since most pesticides don’t harm eggs. ; Bagworm - Pesticides can be used in the first two week of June when the worm is small enough to be Controlled (1/4 inch of less, before it forms a bag). Pick off bagworms in fall, winter, and spring, and destroy. - Leafminer - Employ pest control measures on the immature pest after eggs hatch but before the leafminer starts to burrow into the leaves. It is difficult to control leafminers once they’re in the leaf, since they are resistant to systemics. Dnce the insect emerges from the leaf as an adult (small fly, moth, or beetle), it can be controlled before it lays eggs. „ Cucumber beetle - Appearing jn early summer, these beetles spread bacterial wilt and squash mosaic disease that can damage and possibly kill plants. One of these beetles should be enough warning to take the precaution of controlling this pest at once. Timing of Herbicide Applications