Back in the 1990s, when organic gardening was still considered the preserve of eco-eccentrics, I often found myself cursing garden-media pundits recommending an arsenal of chemical deterrents to rid their gardens of uninvited guests.
Today, hearing garden experts celebrating garden gatecrashers suggests that the notion that we are part of nature, not detached from it, is at last gaining traction.
You may also like
- RHS reveals pests and diseases ranking for gardeners
- How are gardeners adapting to climate change?
- Box tree moth caterpillar solution found by National Trust
- Honey fungus spread could be limited with the help of these plants
So why are there still aisles at garden centres and DIY stores stacked high with pesticides and herbicides? Perhaps, if we really want to champion a mindset rooted in understanding, co-existence and respect, it’s time to stop using the word ‘pest’?
Having gardened without the use of chemicals for more than 30 years, it’s frustrating to see this word used so frequently in the garden media, as it oversimplifies nature’s complexity.
In our quest for horticultural perfection, anyone preventing us from producing perfect blooms and unblemished fruit and veg is, unsurprisingly, labelled a ‘pest’, and their removal is justified, regardless of the consequences. This leads to control methods that often include pesticides that may, in turn, harm pollinators, birds and soil microbes necessary for healthy plant growth.
Labels such as ‘pests’ or ‘vermin’ literally reinforce the idea that they need eradicating
Language can be useful here. ‘Something’ as opposed to ‘someone’ infers a degree of inanimateness, which can diminish any sense of worth or relevance. Some people might feel that this flirts with anthropomorphism and is a step too far, but referring to a life form as ‘someone’ rather than ‘something’ is a good start in acknowledging the value of their existence.
It’s worth remembering that the myriad life forms that might jeopardise our efforts are not doing it deliberately to annoy us; they’re simply following their natural instinct for survival.
Perhaps we should stop taking it so personally, or question the very idea of horticultural perfection. We are taught that these creatures are our sworn enemies, and must be controlled and eradicated at every opportunity but, in many cases, holding your nerve and taking time to observe how nature works can be revelatory.
Someone once spotted caterpillars on a hornbeam hedge in a show garden I was helping with at Chelsea and a call went out for the hedge to be sprayed. The ensuing panic was quelled literally minutes later when a family of blue tits arrived to feast on the grubs. Munched leaves might still lose the garden points, we were told; but after much discussion, they were left on as a badge of honour.
A couple of years later, while fine-tuning my argument for the use of dandelions, nettles, alkanet and other so-called ‘weeds’ in the Centrepoint Garden at Chelsea in 2023, I stumbled across the Database of Insects and their Food Plants that lists interactions between invertebrate herbivores and their host plants.
The interactions (both numerous and mind-blowing) helped galvanise my decision to include them regardless of whether it lost us marks or who it might upset. I’m not sure just how accurate it is, but it wouldn’t be unreasonable to assume that the number of interactions listed are a minimum estimate.
Crucially, while many gardeners now see the value of wildlife, there are many more non-gardeners who still look to horticultural websites to learn how to deal with the ‘nuisances’ they encounter. Labels such as ‘pests’ or ‘vermin’ literally reinforce the idea that they need eradicating.
Horticultural organisations and media therefore have an opportunity, perhaps even a responsibility, to educate non-gardeners about the drastic decline of insect populations and how this may jeopardise the health of the planet for future generations.
Perhaps, if we really want to champion a mindset rooted in understanding, co-existence and respect, it’s time to stop using the word ‘pest’?
Disappointingly, in the time it’s taken to write this piece, I’ve failed to come up with an alternative term or substitute for the word ‘pest’. ‘Associated invertebrates’ doesn’t exactly roll off the tongue, so how about just ‘associates’, or perhaps ‘host for X, Y and Z’? Suggestions welcome. In the meantime, let’s try and see ‘pests’ associated with particular plants as collaborators and as a reason to include them.
Perhaps then, by acknowledging and celebrating the myriad lifeforms that maintain balance in our gardens, and helping them flourish, we can foster genuine empathy and compassion that will help us improve our relationship with nature, and accept, finally, that gardens are not just for people.
Cleve West is an award-winning garden designer. You can find the Database of Insects and their Food Plants at dbif.brc.ac.uk