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I have a beautiful south florida garden in zone 10b, and I absolutely love all of the lizards and chameleons that call my yard home but I am also having a small insect problem. What kind of insect killer can I use that won't harm the wildlife? Also something that won't poison my fruits and veggies? I try to stay as organic as possible but if I get infested with insects my fruits and veggies won't even make it. Thanks.

I was thinking of saying this in your other thread, but maybe it's more useful here: depending on the insect, a cordless vac can be used to remove bugs from plants. winged ones are particularly vulnerable, even with an underpowered unit, as soon as they spread their wings to get away from the threat. It always reminds me of Edna Mose in the Incredibles saying to Mr. Incredible: "NO CAPE!"

I'm going to go ahead and make the soap mixture you spoke of. Do I rinse it afterwards or leave it on? Thanks.

Wish I could get some bats around here.

I loooove the green anoles! We have so many anoles and geckos it's crazy!

These green anoles (also called chameleons because they change color) are all over my yard and my absolute favs. They're adorable! It would break my heart if I hurt one on accident with insecticides and what not. <3

[img]https://www.blurtit.com/var/group/images/g/g9/g96/g963/featured_g963895_anole.jpg[/img]

[img]https://top-10-list.org/wp-content/uploads/2009/06/green-anole.jpg[/img]

You can see these on the walls outside at night.

[img]https://www.philsquest.com/images/2008/04/21/gecko.jpg[/img]

Wow I wouldn't want to harm them either. They're beautiful!
On the average, how many of these do you have out in your garden?

Mia (which is my dogs name but spelled differently very cool ) Great pics and I love the lizards you have, very wonderful. I wouldn't want to harm them either. I use organic/safe pesticides on my plants. Either soap (not detergent), NEEM, or pyrethrin. But I don't spray down entire plants. I go out and hunt the little buggers down one by one and spray accordingly. That way I keep the bad guy's at a controllable number and don't hurt the good guy's that I value so much. Sure it takes more time, but I get a better feel of how my garden is doing with all the extra time spent staring aimlessly for something to take down that is trying to take down my plants.


It's personal.

I just wrote a tremendously long post and accidently clicked off the page, so I'll sum up everything I said quickly.
I'm glad you all enjoyed the photos! I love them!
On average, while sitting outside in the morning for 5-10 minutes drinking my coffee, I see anywhere from 10 to 20 lizards (green and brown anoles) running along the fenceline and jumping from leaf to leaf.
My garden consists of mainly crimson sweet watermelons which have taken over and also butterfly weed, zinnia and morning glories. The lizards really seem to love hanging out in the garden more than ever.
When it's not too hot and humid of a day, I am going to try the soap spray method.
Thanks for all of the replies!

gixxerific wrote:Mia (which is my dogs name but spelled differently very cool

hehe, actually the mia in my name is for miami which is where I garden, but the name mia is so cute for a puppy dog.

Very cool lizards nice photos of them.

Thanks for sharing these tips. I also have those beautiful garden "dragons". I've been reluctant to try many things in fear of harming them. I usually pride myself in my problem solving ability, however, I'm feeling inadequate. I never thought about using a shop vac to eliminate my squash bugs. THANK YOU SO MUCH!

Unless the insects are a real problem, don't worry about it, the geckos gotta eat too.