2024-10-21
bentonite-Kaolin clay: Pest control the old-fashioned way
Pest control in the Kentucky vegetable garden sometimes seems like a Cold War-era arms race. Just when you get ahead of one problem, another ruby-throated ninja stem annihilator (don’t worry ... this is a made-up pest!) emerges on the horizon.Sometimes it seems that it would be easier to just chuck the whole thing and take up tennis for the remainder of the summer. But other times there emerges a reminder that simple and low tech can provide some answers. Such is the case with kaolin clay.Use of kaolin clay and other mineral elements has been practiced for more than 2,000 years. Taking a nod from observations of animals taking dust baths to rid themselves of insect pests, both the ancient Chinese and Egyptians used various minerals and dusts as crop protectants.