?: Re-til died back cuke vines or compost?

pootnrootn

9 years ago

I want to discourage bad bugs, so which is better?

Featured Answer

rgreen48

9 years ago

last modified: 9 years ago

For most pests, surface litter of the host plant makes for the preferred over-wintering habitat.

As discussed above, unless you are doing a proper, well-controlled rotation, discarding diseased plants is often the best choice for the home gardener. Some insects do over-winter in the soil as larvae. Most will look for garden debris and hide.

The best way to control pests in the off season is to remove the finished plants. If pests are the concern, then tilling them under the soil is a perfectly good choice. I turn many of my plants under the soil. The exception in my area is tomatoes. I never turn tomato debris under. Because of fungal spores, I remove them all and discard in the trash.

If disease is the concern, burn or discard (or till under and don't plant that crop family again in that soil for 4 years.) Fungal spores are a minor exception... some diseases are 'soil-borne'. Fungal spores however, do not stay in the soil... they live on host plant material, and easily spread again the next year. The spores travel on the wind, and the best a gardener can do is maintain a reasonably sized 'clean' area around the garden. The more infected material around the garden, the faster the spores will spread next season, and the more severe the infection.

If the pest in question is one that does over-winter as larvae (or pupae - like the Squash Vine Borer), then multiple tillings before planting the next season will help expose the over-wintering pests to the elements and predators. If you see pupae or larvae, remove them as you turn the soil.

Also, keep in mind that the garden litter which pests use to over-winter does not have to be directly in the garden. For best results, you'll want to keep a reasonable area around the garden clear of hiding places from the elements. All of this, of course, will vary by the climate and weather of your region.

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Comments (6)

kimmq
9 years ago
I'm not sure that one, tilling or composting, is better than the other. I have done both and have not seen any problems associated with tilling in the plant residue or cleaning it from the garden and composting it.
Jon Biddenback
9 years ago
If you're thinking get rid of a confirmed disease, it's probably better to either discard the stuff, or compost it so hot the pile self-sterilizes and has to cool down a bit before it can get back to work.

If you're concerned about macroscopic bugs, I'm not sure either method is superior to the other. Personally, I like predators for pest management, so to me it makes sense to let things be until something notices good eats nearby, and settles in to carve the population down to size and keep it that way. Though, I am biased by having started with nearly dead soil; so I look at nearly all life in the area as a net gain, even if they are tomato-eating jerks.
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klem1
9 years ago
Neither,burn or send them to landfill. The exception would be if you maintain separate compost bins for garden and landscape. It is a good idea to remove spent,dieing or dead plants from the garden and use them elsewhere. A light infestation of disease or insect is easy to overlook and if plants remain in garden,the problem can explode a year later. Same apply's to bad fruit removed from plants,get it away from the garden.
gardengal48 (PNW Z8/9)
9 years ago
I think more explanation is required :-) Did the plants have an insect infestation this season? Discouraging "bad bugs" really has nothing to do with tilling the old material back into the garden OR composting if insects were not a major issue this season. If this is the case, then whichever method you prefer is perfectly acceptable. If insects were a problem, then I'd want to know what kind you were dealing with........many will not survive without live plant tissue to feed on or have short enough life cycles that composting the plant remains will successfully destroy them or any habitat.

Diseases are a bit different, as home composters are seldom able to attain and maintain sufficiently high composting temps to kill off disease pathogens.

I'm not sure I understand the above comment about 'bad fruit' :-) Windfall or rotten fruit or garden produce can be very safely composted. If 'bad' meaning bug infected, then again, I'd want to knw what sort of bugs before making a recommendation.
klem1
9 years ago
My answer is geared to gardeners that can't identify pest damage. If OP knew how to identify pests,chances are they wouldn't be seeking answers on a public forum. Eventhough less common in cukes,vines may have wilted as result of squash vine bore damage. Due to life cycle of svb,the best line of defense is destroying vines. There's no sense in gambling for only a few oz of compostable material. You bet,if OP would undertake in depth study,they can become familiar enough to tell use why vines died but very few home gardeners go that far. Op need's the answer today,not after a study has been done. Has something to do with better safe than sorry as apposed to re-inventing the wheel.