So many of our customers are coming in right now reporting that they are finding overnight destruction of many of the leaves in their garden. The leaves are filled with holes. This is especially prevalent in the vegetable garden. The culprit is likely earwigs!

Earwigs are mostly nocturnal and find moist, dark hiding spots during the day. When they come out at night, and feed on a wide variety of plants including foliage, flowers and various crops.

How do you rid your garden of these nefarious pests? We have several products we recommend and a few home remedies to try:

The first product we reach for is Sluggo Plus. Sluggo Plus helps gardeners control some of the most infamous garden pests. It combines proven slug and snail control with the addition of organic Spinosad which is an insect killer to control not only earwigs, but cutworms, sowbugs and pillbugs as well. Sluggo Plus can be used around all organic vegetables, fruits and berries.

Make 3 lines of defense – Sprinkle immediately around the effected plant, around the bed where they are growing and then hand cast some Sluggo Plus under nearby low-growing shrubbery where they hang out during the day.

All organic Captain Jacks Deadbug Brew® kills does just as the name implies. It kills earwigs, bagworms, borers, beetles, caterpillars, codling moth, gypsy moth, loopers, leaf miners, spider mites, tent caterpillars, thrips and more! Again, the active ingredient is Spinosad which is a product first isolated from a naturally occurring soil dwelling bacterium.

For home remedies, you can try a few different options. Take an empty tuna or cat food can (or maybe a metal pie dish), sink it into the ground near the most affected plants and pour in a little soy sauce (which attracts them) and cooking oil (which traps them). Alternately, you can fill the can/dish with a thin layer of beer and see who you can catch.

As the weather has warmed, we’ve seen aphids appear. Aphids are little green (although they can be other colors such as black, yellow or grey) insects that suck the juice from new spring leaves. The subsequent scarring can cause the leaves to warp and curl around the aphids, protecting them.

In addition to weakening the plant, aphids drop a messy, sugary residue on items below their work site and they are also prolific in their reproduction, making problems exponentially worse if left unchecked.

The first line of defense with aphids is to hose them off the plants physically with a spray of water. If you have a small infestation, you can wipe them off the leaves. These techniques would need to be repeated daily.

A favorite way to handle these invaders and also very effective are to release lady bugs into your garden. These beneficial insects are a valuable addition to the toolkit of every Valley gardener. Alden Lane Nursery can provide them in useful quantities and advise you on where and how to use them most effectively. Each adult ladybug will consume over 5,000 aphids in their lifetime.

Don’t panic when you see the black “bug” pictured! That is the ladybug larvae.

For those wishing another organic or natural method of controlling aphids, we suggest a one-two punch, first with Bonide All Seasons Spray Oil followed up with a fresh release of Ladybugs a day or 2 later.

The spray oil simply sprays on at the end of a hose, no mixing. It smothers pests, rather than poisoning them. The Ladybugs mop up the leftovers and stand guard against local aphid uprisings.

It’s Vegetable Season! Alicia in our Bedding department wanted to give you some fun varieties to ponder. You probably already know the old favorites, but have you ever tried….

• The Italian Rampicante Squash. It’s tender, mild, nutty, and sweet. And just a lot of fun with its pale color the curved neck so long you can wear it as a necklace.
• Do you have trouble with your cucumbers turning bitter? Try the Armenian Cucumber. It has a long pale green fruit that is reliably not bitter.
• Consider the Marchant pepper, the iconic pepper of the California Gold Rush. They are a hot pepper, but not too hot, and often pickled although we have used them in salsas and sauces of all descriptions. Also known as the California Italian Wax pepper or Chileno. This pepper is in commercial production, so you have to grow them to have them.
• Do you love the Golden Ground Cherries (Goldie) that we are just starting to see in the grocery stores? They are actually a variety of tomatillo, and we have them in stock for a limited time. Remember for all tomatillos you need 2 plants (does not need to be the same variety) because they are not self-pollenating.
• And let’s not forget our tomatoes! Continue the California Connections with San Francisco Fog (a mid-sized red slicer,) Berkeley Tie Die (a multicolor beefsteak,) the Napa Chardonnay (a sweet yellow cherry tomato,) and the Napa Rosé (a pink cherry tomato).

It is no secret that we are mad about roses around here. They are standouts in our gardens, love the sun and can be quite drought-tolerant once established. A new rose for the garden would make a wonderful Valentine’s Day gift. Remember, we are happy to foil wrap and add a bow for a perfect presentation. Here are a few Valentine’s inspired roses to consider:

We typically reach for flowers when thinking about adding a dash of color to our gardens. But for true season-long interest in the garden, consider a shrub that will give you lasting color. When you plan your garden using colorful shrubs, their leaves lend a rainbow of hues to enjoy. The different shades and textures offer a burst of color – some even change colors throughout the year.

Take a look at these colorful shrubs which are real standouts in the landscape:

Coprosma repens (Mirror Plant) – The glossy leaves change color as colder weather approaches. Small, inconspicuous blooms in the spring. This hardy evergreen shrub needs protection if the temperatures dip below 25°.

Laurus noblis (Sweet Bay) – An aromatic evergreen available in shrub or tree form. This Mediterranean native is where the “bay leaf” used in cooking for seasoning comes. This can grow into a fairly large plant.

Pittosporum tobira – A popular dwarf shrub that is evergreen and mounding. Good to use as a low boundary or for poolside plantings. (‘Wheeler’s Dwarf’ is a popular variety.)

Abelia grandiflora – The Abelia has attractive foliage and gracefully arching branches. The eye-catching leaves (and sometimes the stems!) come in different colors and often change throughout the growing season. When in bloom, the flowers are popular with pollinators. (The variety ‘Kaleidoscope’ is a colorful choice.)

Rhaphiolepis indica (Indian Hawthorne) – A spreading, compact broadleaf evergreen that bears deep pink flower in shiny foliage that changes color with the seasons. Berry-like, dark blue fruit follows flowers.

Coleonema pulchrum (Compact Breath of Heaven) – This popular shrub is evergreen, hardy and mounding to about 3′ tall. Small, showy blooms in spring often repeat in fall. If you are looking for a larger shrub (think 6-10′), the non compact Coleonema is an option.

Olea europaea (Little Ollie) – All the beauty of the attractive grayish green leaves without the mess of a fruiting olive. This one can grow large at 5-15′ tall, but can be controlled with pruning. The dense growth is great as a hedge, low screen, accent or small tree.

Nandina domestica (Heavenly Bamboo) – In every season this versatile plant is a garden standout. Serves as an excellent accent or container plant. Choose neat mounding or softer upright forms. Make sure the soil is well draining. (‘Firepower’ is a great choice if you are looking for a red variety.)