Hillingdon Allotment News  13: Pesticide problems / disposal

Pesticide problems/ disposal

Are you one of the ‘spray and be damned brigade’? Irresponsible use of pesticides has given gardeners a bad name over the years and has lead to the provision of weaker and weaker pesticides for home use as well as the withdrawal of many due to the ever increasing costs to the companies of registering these. While many allotmenteers try to grow organically, this inevitable means a certain level of pests present despite the use of so called ‘natural sprays’. Even these are not as safe as they appear, Derris, an organic product kills everything that walks, flies or twitches, whereas a produce designed to only kill aphids, and protect ladybirds, has been banned. So what is required is a responsible attitude towards chemical use, whatever it may be, in order to protect the biodiversity of plants and animals on our sites. If you have old or banned pesticides left in your shed, please dispose of them properly and don’t throw them down the drain. Take them along to your local recycling centre where they will be disposed of in a proper manner.

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