Neonicotinoids: Their Impact and Reasons to Exclude Them from Your Garden
In a growing effort to protect pollinators and promote sustainable gardening, gardeners are increasingly turning away from neonicotinoids, a class of pesticides that have been linked to widespread harm to insect life. Neonicotinoids, chemically related to nicotine and less toxic to mammals, birds, and other higher organisms than to invertebrates like insects, were welcomed by agriculture due to their deadly effectiveness against insects. However, hundreds of studies have established that neonics kill many bees and pollinators around the world, making U.S. agriculture much more harmful to insect life.
Neonicotinoids are systemic pesticides, taken up through plant roots and absorbed into the plants, with the toxins present in both pollen and nectar. This means that bees and other pollinators can be harmed even when the initial application was made months earlier. Between April 2020 and 2021, some 45 percent of honeybee colonies were lost, a stark reminder of the devastating impact neonics can have on pollinators.
Recent information has shown that the initial claims of neonicotinoids being less harmful to nature than older types of pesticides are untrue. Neonicotinoids have been found to be toxic to pollinators such as bees and have contributed to the wide use of neonics having a harmful effect on insect life. As a result, gardeners are being encouraged to take every step possible to minimize the use of toxic insecticides.
Fortunately, alternatives to using neonicotinoid pesticides for gardening focus mainly on more sustainable, less toxic methods that protect beneficial insects, pollinators, and soil health. One such approach is the Integrated Pest Management (IPM) system, a holistic pest control strategy that emphasizes monitoring pest populations regularly to decide if and when intervention is needed. IPM incorporates cultural controls, physical controls, biological controls, and chemical pesticides, if used, are applied judiciously and only as a last resort to minimize environmental impact.
Other alternatives include cultural and physical controls, such as modifying gardening practices to prevent pest buildup and utilizing physical barriers or traps to reduce pest access without chemicals. Biological controls, like employing natural enemies of pests, can also be effective in controlling pest populations while supporting biodiversity. Organic gardening practices, which avoid synthetic pesticides entirely, are another option, relying on natural pest deterrents and fostering healthy soil and ecosystem balance.
In addition, planting native vegetation can support local beneficial insects and pollinators, reducing the need for chemical pest control. Teo Spengler, a master gardener and docent at the San Francisco Botanical Garden who has studied horticulture and written about nature, trees, plants, and gardening for over two decades, emphasizes the importance of these approaches.
Spengler, who currently splits her life between San Francisco and the French Basque Country, though she was raised in Alaska, giving her experience of gardening in a range of climates, recommends taking off all of a plant's flower for the first year after purchase to keep the bees safe. She also advises gardeners to determine if plants they consider purchasing have already been treated with neonics by looking on the label or talking to staff at the garden store.
In summary, gardeners can replace neonicotinoids by adopting IPM strategies, enhancing cultural and physical controls, leveraging biological pest control agents, embracing organic methods, and planting native species. These approaches reduce harmful impacts on pollinators, soil organisms, and overall ecosystem health while maintaining effective pest management. Every gardener can choose not to use neonicotinoids and make a positive impact on the environment.
- Environmental sciences have shown that neonicotinoids, a class of pesticides commonly used in agriculture and home gardening, are harmful to pollinators like bees and have contributed to the decline of insect life.
- Given the toxic effects of neonicotinoids on pollinators, gardening strategies are shifting towards Integrated Pest Management (IPM), which prioritizes natural pest deterrents, biological controls, and cultural practices to decrease the need for synthetic pesticides.
- By adopting sustainable gardening methods such as IPM, planting native vegetation, and avoiding neonicotinoids, gardeners can support beneficial insects and pollinators, promote soil health, and ultimately, contribute to a healthier environment.
