Gardeners and landscapers often rely on chemical treatments like pesticides, herbicides, and fertilisers to keep plants free from damage and allow them to thrive. However, low-quality treatments can actually have the opposite effect, leading to poor results and potentially even negatively affecting your soil quality, polluting water runoff and, thus, damaging your wider environment and local ecosystems.
Incorrect ingredients, improper safety testing, or overly diluted treatments can be ineffective at best, and dangerous at worst. That’s why it’s so important to learn to gauge quality when buying your garden chemical treatments.
Today, we’ll teach you what to look for in your treatments, so your garden can get the most out of what you buy.
Check for Quality Certification and Regulatory Compliance
When it comes to chemical treatments, certifications matter. Certified products undergo rigorous testing to confirm their safety and the accuracy of their ingredients.
One of the best ways to determine if you’re buying a high-quality product is to look for an ISO 17025 certification. This internationally recognised certification indicates that the treatment was developed in a competent laboratory that consistently produces reliable products. In short, you can trust that a product made by manufacturers that are ISO 17025 compliant is going to be effective.
Additionally, you should scan the treatment for regulatory approvals from the Australian Pesticides and Veterinary Medicine Authority (APVMA) to ensure the product has been scientifically evaluated to be safe for humans, animals, and the environment.
Examine the Active Ingredients and Formulation
The ingredients in your chemical treatment determine how useful the product will be for your garden. For example, glyphosate is an effective herbicide that, when properly diluted, is completely safe for a home garden when used according to package instructions. An appropriate chemical treatment will therefore include less glyphosate in its formulation for a gardener than a product intended for commercial usage, but will still be effective. Similarly, neem oil (and its purified components, such as azadirachtin) is a natural active ingredient to look for when seeking a chemical pesticide for your garden.
A good fertiliser will contain a blend of nitrogen, phosphorus, and potassium, otherwise known as the NPK ratio. Each of these chemicals has a unique benefit to your plants. Nitrogen promotes leafy growth and vigor, phosphorus encourages root development and flowering, and potassium supports health and fruit production.
We recommend examining a fertiliser’s formulation to find an NPK ratio that supports the nutrient requirements for all the plants and crops in your garden. Generally, across all treatments, a lower concentration of active ingredients signals a lower quality. But you also don’t want overly diluted fertilisers if you know you’re working with more sensitive plants.
Assess Product Reviews and Manufacturer Reputation
Product reviews are a tried and true way to learn more about the quality of a garden chemical treatment. Customer feedback can help you gauge the real-world effectiveness of a product. While one bad review may not mean much, repeated complaints about a product should raise alarm bells.
You should also search for third-party lab results that verify a treatment’s effectiveness and safety. Third-party testing is generally an essential process for qualifying chemical products for industry certification or board approval. So if you can’t find any third-party test results for a product, this could be a red flag and a sign to steer clear of using that product in your garden.
Finally, conduct an internet search to learn more about the product manufacturer and determine if you can trust them, evaluating their transparency, responsiveness, and history. You’d be surprised by what you can learn from a quick Google search!
Consider Environmental and Safety Factors
Some products are safer than others for the soil, insects, animals, and people that live in or around your garden. To choose the most environmentally friendly and safe products, look for terms like “biodegradable” or “pollinator-safe” on product packaging.
A biodegradable product will break down naturally without leaving toxic residues, meaning it has a minimal environmental impact. This is important because some chemicals can remain in the soil for months and contaminate local water supplies. A pollinator-safe product won’t harm the bees and butterflies that native and garden plants rely on to flower and bear fruit.
Please note that all chemical treatments (regardless of quality) can become unsafe if used improperly. Follow package instructions regarding handling, storage, and application to prevent harm to yourself and your surrounding environment.
Compare Price vs. Quality
Remember that cheaper isn’t always better. In fact, a cheaper product could indicate that the company has skimped on the concentration of active ingredients or on testing the product’s effectiveness.
Although higher-quality products may come with a higher price tag, their stronger formulas often require fewer applications, meaning they are more cost-effective in the long run. If you find a high-quality product from a reputable brand, you may be able to purchase it in bulk to enjoy the benefits for less.
Key Takeaways
Give your garden the best care you can by buying high-quality garden chemical treatments. Next time you’re in the garden centre, remember to:
- Look for certified products that are approved by the APVMA to ensure the product has been scientifically proven to be safe and effective.
- Examine ingredient lists to determine if they contain effective active ingredients that are appropriately formulated for your needs.
- Search for customer reviews, third-party studies, and information about the producer’s reputation.
- Evaluate the chemical treatment’s potential to cause harm to your health, the surrounding environment, or essential pollinators.
- Compare prices to gauge the quality and cost-effectiveness of the product.
With these tips at your disposal, you should be able to source all the highest quality and most suitable garden chemical products for your shed.
