You stroll through your garden one morning to find that your healthy, thriving plants are covered in tiny green, black, or white specks. They’re aphids! But where did they come from and how did they take over your plants so quickly? More importantly, how can you get rid of them — and keep them from coming back? Aphids are some of the most common and frustrating insect pests that gardeners face. Although they’re frequent garden foes, they’re not invincible. With a few consistent strategies, you’ll be able to manage the damage they do. A few aphids on your plants today can easily turn into dozens in less than a week, and soon your plants may turn yellow and die.

If you’re a gardener, you’ve dealt with garden pests before. This is especially true if you have an edible garden. Too many gardeners aim to eliminate pests completely, but this is neither realistic nor good for your local ecosystem. Yet this doesn’t mean that you have to sit back and do nothing when herbivore pests invade your garden and seek to destroy all your hard work. In fact, there are lots of things you can do to minimize the damage from insect pests without reaching for synthetic fungicides or pesticides.