If you plan to harvest herbs for use in cooking or to make herbal remedies, you’ll want to avoid using pesticides. And even if you won’t be ingesting the herbs, it just makes sense to minimize your use of pesticides — even organic ones. The good news is that you can find plenty of ecologically sound ways to control pests without resorting to sprays:
Choose pest-resistant herbs that are adapted to your climate.
Keep plants healthy by making sure that they’re getting the right amount of sun, water, and fertilizer for optimal growth.
Plant a diversity of plants to invite beneficial insects into your landscape to help control pests.
Inspect plants frequently so that you catch problems early.
Use barriers, such as row covers, to prevent pests from reaching plants.
Trap pests, such as slugs, to reduce their populations.
Hand-pick insect pests or wash them off with a blast of water.
