One common trait most Gardeners posses is a dedication to growing healthy, lush plants. Regardless if your cultivating plants as a source of food or for aesthetic pleasures, great results are always desired.

Green Catapillar - Pest

What start out as a beautiful garden with bright foliage on your plants may soon turn into a veggie buffet for pests and diseases like bugs and fungus that live and feed on plants leaves, flowers, stem and root.

Be prepared
Before planting a single seed, every Gardener should be prepared for an infestation of either pests or diseases. If you have bad fortune, you might experience a problem with both pests and diseases.

However, if the Gardener understands what makes the perfect home for bugs and diseases then, perhaps, they can avoid a problem completely. The objective is to create an environment that is not pest/disease friendly.

• By growing plants in a hydroponics application, you've already taken a big step towards minimizing pest attacks considering most pests are found in the soil.
  
  

• Keep your growing environment clean and sanitized and have good ventilation or air flow.
  
  

• Grow your plants as healthy as possible. Make sure the plants receive ample amount of light. The more light a plant receives the bigger and stronger it grows. Check your solutions pH, EC and TDS. A stabilized nutrient solution will grow plants vigorously and healthy. Healthy plants are more resistant to pests and diseases.
  
  

• Monitor plants closely and often for pests and disease problems. A good Gardener will check every section of a plant - roots, stems, leaves (both sides), flowers and fruits for problems.

Possible signs of a problem
Possible signs of a pest or disease problem may be spots, holes or bumps on leaves. Droopy, discolored, fuzzy or dying foliage might be a signal as well although that could be nutrient related.

Conclusion
Before planting a single seed, prepare your growing environment, ensuring that it's clean and sanitized.

• Hydroponics applications minimize the risk of an attack.
  
  
• Keep plants growing healthy and vigorous by feeding them properly and checking your nutrient solution pH, TDS and E.C for stability.
  
  
• Monitor plants carefully and regularly to catch problems early.

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