Pests are one of the most persistent problems you’ll face in farming. Insects, rodents and other animals can damage your crops and profits and there’s no one-size-fits-all solution to addressing them. To get rid of a pest problem, you first need to identify what you’re dealing with.

Why Is It Important to Identify Pest Problems?

Identifying what is eating the crops is vital because different animals require different responses. Many pesticides target specific pests, so you need to know what it is to buy the right product.

Alternatively, you may not even want to use pesticides if you don’t have to, as even nontoxic pesticides can harm humans and beneficial animals. You can get rid of some pests without these chemicals, but which pesticide-free solution is best depends on the specific problem.

Pests also follow different damage cycles. Some will only feed on plants for a short period, while others will multiply throughout a growing season, causing widespread damage. Those situations will warrant different responses and levels of urgency, so you need to identify the pests first. Here are a few ways you can do that.

1. Look at the Damage

You’ll likely see the damage pests leave behind before seeing the animals themselves. Thankfully, even this can help you determine what type of pest is plaguing your crops. Look at where the damage is and what it looks like, then record this data to compare it to known pest behaviors.

Many insects follow specific eating patterns that help identify them. Weevils chew around leaf edges, but caterpillars leave larger holes and trails throughout the inside of a leaf. You may need more information than the damage type to determine your pest, but it’s a good place to start.

2. Consider the Host Plant Type

Next, look at the types of crops where you’re noticing the damage. This will help you further narrow down your pest by ruling out animals that don’t eat certain plants or highlighting ones that favor specific crops.

It’s important to remember that just because a pest has a plant in its name doesn’t mean it’ll only consume one type of plant. You may find cabbage worms in leafy vegetables that aren’t cabbage. However, looking at the kinds of pests that generally prefer the types of crops you see damage on will help narrow down your results.

3. Monitor Insect Activity

Some insects are beneficial because they eat pests. These bugs can also help you identify if you have a problem and what the annoyance in question may be. If you notice more predators around your crops, it may signal that more of their prey is around, too.

Ground beetles feed on harmful slugs and caterpillars, so if you notice a surge in your ground beetle population, you may have a slug problem. Some insects don’t feed on pests but can still suggest their presence. Ants tend to protect aphids because they eat the honeydew they leave behind, so increased ant activity may indicate aphids.

4. Record the Pests’ Physical Appearance

If you see the pests in question, take a picture of them. Following the past few steps and looking at physical appearances can help you identify precisely what’s damaging your crops.

Be sure to double-check your findings instead of assuming you know what you’re looking at. Compare your pictures to other photos of the pest online or in an insect identification book to confirm what it is.

Next Steps

By comparing all of this information, you should be able to identify the specific pest you’re dealing with. You can then take the necessary steps to resolve the pest problem.

If you decide to use pesticides, choose them carefully — even natural pesticides can be dangerous. Lead and nicotine, for example, aren’t safe for the environment, despite occurring naturally, and some regulatory bodies ban them. Always double-check any local laws and look for the safest possible route forward for your crops and the surrounding environment.

Look up how other farmers in the area have successfully gotten rid of the specific pests you’ve encountered. As a rule of thumb, pest-specific approaches are better than general-purpose treatments.

Identifying Pests Is the First Step to Getting Rid of Them

Once you know what pests are on your farm, stopping them can be fairly easy. As with many issues, you just need to start with information. The more you know about the pests eating your crops, the safer and more effective your treatment strategy can be.