Today we will talk about biological pest controlling. You must have heard that in many places in the world, people are using poultry birds such as Chickens, Ducks, or Guineas to control pests in their garden. Today we will discuss about these methods and their pros and cons.
Raising chickens or ducks etc is it self a fun activity. The experience of waking up in the morning with a rooster crowing can be very pleasing. They provide a fresh supply to your food requirements. But there are more to eggs and meats; you can use these birds to control your garden pests. Yes that’s right. Poultry birds in particular are natural insect feeders. They eat grasshoppers, millipedes, ticks and literally any type of insect which generally flourish in the garden.
Apart from these garden pests, they also provide natural defense to your house from scorpions, mice, termites etc. Chickens also provide dropping which can be a very good fertilizer for the plants.
Muscovy Ducks are famous for eating mosquitoes. You might have heard that in USA several centuries ago ducks have been introduced for controlling mosquitoes. They eat the larvae of the mosquitoes when they are in water and can even catch the adult if they fly nearby. Even the small duckling can do a pretty good job in controlling mosquitoes.
Some people have also used chicken for tilling the gardens. Chicken usually till the soil in search of insects. It is also helpful in controlling weeds (More on weed control can be found here). But it is best to apply this technique before the plantation otherwise in search of food they can even uproot or gobble your dear plants.
While talking about pest controlling birds, the most famous of them is Guinea fowl. They look like small chicken sized vultures. The birds are voracious eaters. They eat ticks, flies, beetles, bugs and even snakes. They will also protect the territory like no other. Some times like a barking dog, they make so much noise in case they saw any intrusion. Just remember, in case you are buying Guineas buy the younger ones. The adult fowl are hard to domesticate and have the tendency to escape. You can also keep guineas and chickens together; they don’t harm the each other.
Another option is raring Turkeys. Apart from their delicious meat, you can use them in pest controlling. They will also prevent your garden from grasshoppers, cabbage-worms and many other insects. But keep a leash on them when your garden has seedlings. Letting them roam freely in the garden in these times can be disastrous for your Garden.
Chickens, Ducks, Guineas or turkey are no doubt can be a very good addition to your backyard. If used with caution these can give a strong boost to your pest controlling measures and in turn help you in doing gardening organically.
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