Herbicides and Insecticides: What, When, Why, and the Alternatives
by Carrie Stark
When you spend hours on your hands and knees toiling in the dirt to produce crop, you don’t want the aggravation of watching your plants wilt away or be eaten by other creatures. There are various methods to deal with both problems. The most popular method is to treat soil or plants with herbicides and insecticides. The key to solving any problem is to research possible solutions and to determine the best one.
What are Herbicides and Insecticides?
One common solution is to purchase an herbicides and insecticides from the local grocery store. Herbicides and insecticides are part of a larger group called pesticides. According to the Washington State Department of Agriculture a pesticide is a substance that is used to “prevent, destroy, control, repel or mitigate any insect, rodent, snail, slug, fungus, [and] weed.” Some pesticides are specifically designed to eliminate a certain species.
Herbicide is a pesticide that is designed to target weeds that are growing in your yard or garden.
Insecticides are pesticides that are designed to kill, suppress or stupefy insects. They are meant to prevent the insects from eating or destroying plants.
Why Use Them?
