Getting on top of garden pests in winter

With the onset of winter, gardeners face unique opportunities in pest control. This Master Class session will help you take full advantage of these opportunities and get on top of common pests such as gall wasps, fruit flies, and scale insects. The talk will highlight integrated pest management (IPM) approaches that incorporate various techniques to break the breeding cycle and minimize pest populations while minimizing harm to beneficial organisms and the environment. 

This session will focus on Gall Wasp, QLD Fruit Fly and Scale and cover the pest biology and develop your knowledge on these pests, their life cycle, effective control measures you can implement in the winter months and - 

• Monitoring and Detection: How to recognise early signs of pest activity and when
• Cultural Practices: Implementing cultural practices to disrupt pest life cycles and reduce overwintering populations.
• Biological Controls: Encouraging natural predators and beneficial insects to over winter by companion planting to help keep pest populations in check at the start of spring.
• Physical barriers: that you can incorporate to manage these pests.
• Chemical Control Options: las resort and how to use to minimize environmental impact.

By integrating these strategies into a comprehensive pest management plan tailored to winter conditions, gardeners can effectively mitigate the impact of gall wasps, fruit flies, scale insects, and other winter pests, ensuring healthy plants and thriving gardens year-round.    

This session is one of four in a Masterclass Series "Winter Gardening Skills". Other topics include – Grafting 101; Pruning Berry Vines and Bushes; Winter Cover Crops .  

Book the Series Package for discount.  Friends of SGA receive a 15% discount on Master Class full price tickets. You can become a Friend of SGA here. Green Garden Professional (GGPs) receive a 30% discount.  

Image of a Queensland Fruit Fly on a blue tomato taken by Jen Willis

Sustainable Gardening Australia (SGA) is a not-for-profit non-government organiation dedicated to achieving a healthy biodiverse planet.

Its driving purpose is to:

• Encourage, educate and enable home and professional gardeners to adopt sustainable gardening practices to protect or enhance the natural environment;
• Provide information, education and undertake research about the natural environment;
• Reconnect people to the natural world through gardening; and
• Ensure an understanding of the impacts that gardening decisions about chemical and resource use have on the natural environment well beyond their neighbourhood.