6 Go on regular pest hunts
Vigilance is the byword in organic gardening: you must spot pests quickly before they multiply in numbers. Regular garden patrols are essential. You can hand-pick slugs and snails, or put down beer traps. If the problem is bad, organic slug pellets are available (organic ferric-phosphate pellets are usually green, whereas chemical metaldehyde-based pellets are often blue). Greenfly and aphids can be sprayed with a soapy solution. Remove red lily beetles before they defoliate lilies, while blackfly can be blasted from bean plants using a hosepipe. Try biological controls – where natural predators such as nematodes are introduced to target pests.