The most common are insects and they can destroy a garden in a very short time if left to their own devices.
Even the neighbor's cat can be a pest if it is always using your garden as a toilet.
Birds can be another reason for concern if they are eating your plants and can become quite smelly if they are nesting in trees or hedges in abundance.
Pests will use your garden primarily for food and shelter.
To reduce the amount of pests in your garden you need to create an environment that isn't as inviting.
By clearing leaves and waste from the base of your plants you will reduce the amount of shelter.
This will allow you to work the soil better and eliminate the incidence of in-ground insects that can suck the nutrients out of the soil.
You can stop cats, rats and mice from digging in the soil by using effective ground cover in the form of mesh where it becomes too difficult for them to get through to the soil.
By keeping your compost in the correct composting containers there won't be any decaying matter lying around the yard that will attract rats and mice.
Having a tidy garden and yard will not encourage them to make their home on your property.
Traps might be needed as a final deterrent for rats and mice.
Spraying your plants with suitable insecticides will also reduce the unwanted insect population.
There are some good natural applications on the market that will do the job of the commercial insecticides or you can make your own effective natural insecticide.
If you prune back trees and hedges you might make them less appealing to birds and this might help to reduce the population in your garden.
Keep in mind that some insects do a good job of maintaining a balance in the garden by eating other insects and birds will also eat insects that could be causing damage to your plants.
